Reachout Wellness Challenge
Day 6 Self Compassion
When people experience a setback, whether it be from school, work or other family members, it's common to respond in two ways.
We either become defensive and blame others, or we either berate and blame ourselves. Often times, neither prove to be helpful.Whilst shirking from responsibility may allow oneself to escape from the sting of failure, it comes at the cost of learning and on the other hand, berating oneself may feel reinforced in the moment, but it can mislead you to inaccurately assess your own potential which then undermines your personal development.
So what if we use a third way? What if we start being kind, understanding and encouraging, not just to others but also to ourselves by reinforcing it internally?This is what Self Compassion means. The purpose of Self Compassion is to create a sense of self-worth for oneself, to allow you to genuinely care for yourself and your recovery after a setback.
According to research, people with high self compassion demonstrate three common behaviours:
- They are kind rather than judgmental about their own failures and mistakes
- They recognise that failures are a share human experience
- They take a healthy approach towards negative emotions by allowing themselves to feel bad but not allowing those emotions to take over
Some ways for you to practice self compassion:
- Self-kindness:being tolerant of your shortcomings
- Common Humanity:Perceiving your shortcomings as natural aspects of the human condition
- Mindfulness:Adopting our emotions with curiosity and openness when we are faced with setbacks
