5 Ways to Overcome The Fear of Being Judged
In a recent Q&A to a group of amazing individuals, one of the questions I was asked was around the fear of being judged. It made me reflect and think back to my teens when I used to fear being judged by others. That was until I realized that no matter what I did, what I said or how I looked, I’d always be judged by someone.
You see, if I allowed the narrow-minded opinions and self-hating ways of others to define and shape who I am, I wouldn’t be where I am and who I am today. When we fear being judged by others, we lose a part of who we are during the process. That’s how carbon copies are created and people become a shadow of their true self.
That’s no way to live right? The narrow-minded opinions of others should never prevent us from honouring who we are, and showing up in the world as our true self. Now I understand this may sound easier said than done, but there is always a solution and a way to breakthrough regardless of how things may seem.
Here are five ways to overcome the fear of being judged by others:
1. There will only ever be one you
Requiring validation and the acceptance of others will never serve us. Accept and love yourself for who you are, both inside and out. We are all unique beings with beautiful flaws. It’s those flaws that make us stand out from the crowd and draw people towards us. Think about all the things that make you unique and use them to your advantage. Who wants to conform to what’s considered the ‘norm’ anyway?
“Embrace your uniqueness. Time is much too short to be living someone else’s life.” – Kobi Yamada
2. You are here because you have a purpose
Every single one of us has gifts, talents, skills and experiences that are meant to be shared. Long to write an article, create a video, an audio or stand on stage in front of a live audience? Don’t let the fear of judgement stop you. There is someone out there that needs you. There is someone waiting for you to shine your light in their direction so they can overcome what they are going through. They don’t want to hear from anyone else, but you. How long are you going to hold in your greatness?
3. What people think of you is none of your business
What and how you feel about yourself is what actually matters. What other people think is none of your business. If you make it your business, you’ll end up carrying around the opinions of others on your back that will end up weighing you down. What happens when something becomes too heavy? The weight becomes too much to bare and to take further steps forward it has to be released. Free yourself.
4. Focus on what you can control
Don’t allow yourself to be distracted by things you’ll never be able to control. External influences which is everything that is not derived from within will always be there, but the role and impact that they play within our lives is a choice. Have you ever heard the saying “like water off a ducks back?” That’s exactly how to treat the things you can’t control. Let go of them and allow them to roll off.
“You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius
5. Free yourself from limitations
We have a responsibility and owe it to ourselves to be bold, fearless and free from things and people that can limit our abilities, hold us back and suffocate our greatness if we allow them to. Allow your voice to be heard and your inner light to radiate because whilst we cannot control the external influences, we always have the power within to control our internal influences.
This is really inspiring.
Thank you so much Anjali! Really appreciate you commenting.
I have struggled and do struggle still sometimes but not as much as I used to with others judgement of me. In fact as a teenager it crippled my life. Your five tips are so necessary in the world. So life affirming. So refreshing. I especially like it is none of my business. It is so something my dad would have said and made me chuckle to think of my dad on the same page as Marcus Aurelius. It was a pleasure listening to you coach.
I just went back to this post and saw your comment Linda. Please accept my apologies for missing it. Although you commented months ago I wanted to reply and thank you for taking the time to read the post and share your thoughts. I’m really pleased it served you and I hope 2017 has been an amazing year for you so far.
I love the analogy of carrying the burden of what other people think of you can be something heavy that you can’t carry round with you.
Whereas if you think of a person who doesn’t take other people’s opinions of them onboard, it presents an image of someone who is carrying less and is free to explore any path as they don’t have the burden.
Great article, keep it up 🙂
Thank you so much Chris! Really appreciate your comment and yes I agree with you. That image is so much more freeing. 🙂
nic article , am gaining strength with your words
Abinand, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to read the article and comment. I truly appreciate you for doing so. Super happy to read that the post served you and you gained strength from it. Wishing you continued success for your journey in great abundance. Peace, light and blessings to you. 🙂
Excellent article..I’m the person who never did anything in my life because of the only sole reason “WHAT PEOPLE THINK OF ME”. These words never allowed me to do anything. I was searching for a way to come out of this dump and finally found a way through this article. It’s not so easy like it sounds but I will try as best as I can. Thanks for a wonderful article.
Thank you so much for your comment Uday. You are so very welcome. Words cannot express how happy I am to know that this post served you. I thank God for giving me the wisdom, knowledge and understanding to be able to serve you and others in this way. I wish you peace, light, blessings and success on your journey in great abundance. 🙂
Danielle I found this article really inspiring. Every point you raised had some relevance to me. I love the point “what people think of you is none of your business.” It’s so easy to care about what people think of you but even if you’re an angel, there are always imperfections that others can find.
Thanks so much for this article.
Awww Tim, you are soo very welcome. Thank you so much for your kind words. I am so happy that this post served you. You’re right, it can be so easy to care about what people think, but it’s amazing what it feels like to release that weight of what others think. Thank you for reading and engaging with this post. Wishing you continued success in great abundance. Peace, light and blessings to you Tim. 🙂
Great article! Thanks for sharing! Point #2 resonates with me. “There is someone waiting for you to shine your light in their direction so they can overcome what they are going through.” Most people don’t think about how their gifts are presents for other people to unwrap. The more we share our gifts, the more we contribute to making the world a better place. We need to forget the fear of being judged and focus on the impact that we can make.
Charlene, thank you so much for your kind words and it’s great to be connected with you on Twitter. 🙂 You’re very welcome, I feel blessed I was able to share this article and I’m thankful to the Addicted2Success team for giving me the opportunity. Amen! I love your statement: “Most people don’t think about how their gifts are presents for other people to unwrap.” Our purpose is bigger than us and I agree, the more we share the world becomes a better place. I truly appreciate you reading and engaging with this post. Peace light and blessings to you and may the rest of the year and beyond be filled with great things wrapped in abundance. 🙂