The Problem with Seeking Approval
Everyone looks up to someone. Whether it be a family member, a friend, or an idol, everyone has someone who embodies something they wish they had. For me it’s my peers. My career choices have always been different than my family so my mentors have always been others in the field. I follow a lot of influences and try to keep them in mind throughout my day. This is both great motivation and self sabotage.
It’s great to strive to be better but imposter syndrome is a great way to lower your self esteem. It’s hard to say you’ve made it because the metaphorical ‘it’ as an idea is never set in stone. We all know stories of people making it big when they’re in the latter part of their lives so how do we know we’ve hit our potential? The successful always wanting more. But that’ll ultimately cheat you out of your best life - you’ll burn out before you’re satisfied if you’re always reaching for more.
A symptom of wanting the best is wanting praise and reassurance from those we think are there. Being told we did well or that we succeeded in areas we didn’t comprehend as possible for us is always a good feeling. But when we focus on making others proud we forget to focus on making ourselves proud.
We all know what it’s like for people to expect the impossible from us. Whether it’s someone close or not there’s always someone thinking you could’ve…
