I
used to be a bit of a worrier, mainly about being liked and respected by
others. When I think back on it now I can see I had some confidence and
self-esteem issues however, back then, I blamed it on my circumstances. #VictimStory
For
example, from my late teens onwards, I worried about how people would view me
because of my lack of academic qualifications. Most of friends were from good
homes and had been to good schools, were at University or in good jobs and I was
a council estate boy, which led to an inferiority complex which lasted for
decades.
Despite
being immersed in Personal Development in all it’s shapes and forms, I was
unable to shake that feeling of inferiority off and it prevented me from
applying for certain jobs or taking certain courses of action which would have
improved my life, especially financially, in many ways. I held back because I
thought I wasn’t qualified enough, even though I knew I was up to the task or
had more than enough experience to lead a project and so on.
I
was in my 40’s before I really started to work on my issue and that’s when I
came to the realization that I didn’t need qualifications to be the person I
wanted to be or to do the work I wanted to do. I was inspired by people such as
Les Brown and Randy Gage who came from nothing, had little formal schooling and
yet had ‘made it’ to become highly successful and sought-after people.
These
days I no longer worry as much. I still have concerns, however, I know they are of
no consequence to me unless I can actually do something about them. What’s the
point of me losing sleep over what some politician did or didn’t do, or how
another country is treating its citizens, or if a piece of space rock may or
may not enter the Earth’s atmosphere?
That
doesn’t mean I don’t have opinions, because I do, and I’ll voice them too if I
feel the need, but if there’s something that’s beyond my control, I know that
me having numerous sleepless nights isn’t going to make one iota of a
difference to it.
This
also means I can watch the News without reacting, without getting all het up
over some political tweet or diplomatic gaff and the likes. My worrying or
reaction won’t change what’s already happened, therefore there’s no point in
letting all that stuff get to me. If I don’t like what I’m watching on TV I use
my remote to either put the sound on mute or change channel. Simple.
And
what about my inferiority complex? Gone. I allow myself to Be Me and I find
that comes across better than trying to be something I’m not.
Being #authentic, #genuine, more open, has brought more opportunities into my life than
being the Actor I used to be. Yes, I still have my issues, but now I know how
to handle them in a more positive way. I still want to be liked and respected,
who doesn’t? Now, however, I’m no longer worried about it. Whether anyone likes
me or not is their choice, and I accept and respect that.
