Ohhh...the cheerleaders for self-esteem! In my view, anyone who has seen "The Real Housewives" of ANYTHING knows that the last thing most Americans need is more goddamn self-love. Those ladies think they are just fine, thanks.
I agree on the importance of humility, and I'd suggest we emphasize not self-esteem but self-confidence. For myse…
Ohhh...the cheerleaders for self-esteem! In my view, anyone who has seen "The Real Housewives" of ANYTHING knows that the last thing most Americans need is more goddamn self-love. Those ladies think they are just fine, thanks.
I agree on the importance of humility, and I'd suggest we emphasize not self-esteem but self-confidence. For myself, the realization that failure wouldn't kill me was a giant step towards feeling better about life. I'd like to teach more Americans that getting something wrong today is fine--just try to get it right tomorrow. But you have to *try*, and not assume you are just fine as-is.
You see this a lot in the "self care" corner of the internet, especially the areas where people convince each other that poor and unhealthy habits are "treating yourself" because you're a "goddess" and you "deserve it". _Actual_ self care is hard, and involves doing things that are good for you that you might not like, but that doesn't fit on an Instagram meme.
As a feral cat, that shit will get you killed or used as a subject for medical experiments.
Better to take a cold hard look at yourself, what you are really capable of, what you really need, and what those around you can do to you and for you.
Quoting, loosely, Kimi on The Wire. "Once you've taken a few beatdowns, you realize that it isn't the end of the world. Then you can just do your job as a police."
Ohhh...the cheerleaders for self-esteem! In my view, anyone who has seen "The Real Housewives" of ANYTHING knows that the last thing most Americans need is more goddamn self-love. Those ladies think they are just fine, thanks.
I agree on the importance of humility, and I'd suggest we emphasize not self-esteem but self-confidence. For myself, the realization that failure wouldn't kill me was a giant step towards feeling better about life. I'd like to teach more Americans that getting something wrong today is fine--just try to get it right tomorrow. But you have to *try*, and not assume you are just fine as-is.
You see this a lot in the "self care" corner of the internet, especially the areas where people convince each other that poor and unhealthy habits are "treating yourself" because you're a "goddess" and you "deserve it". _Actual_ self care is hard, and involves doing things that are good for you that you might not like, but that doesn't fit on an Instagram meme.
As a feral cat, that shit will get you killed or used as a subject for medical experiments.
Better to take a cold hard look at yourself, what you are really capable of, what you really need, and what those around you can do to you and for you.
I always end up quoting William James:
self-esteem = accomplishments / pretensions
There's also a nice Buddhist equivalent (from memory so WYSIWYG):
Basō mounted the podium and said, "The mind is the Buddha. This is the medicine for those who are sick.
"No mind, no Buddha. This is for those who are sick because of the medicine."
Quoting, loosely, Kimi on The Wire. "Once you've taken a few beatdowns, you realize that it isn't the end of the world. Then you can just do your job as a police."