There are many instances in our lives where we might come across situations in which we have to choose what to say, what to do, how to reply, what to withstand, when to keep calm, when to argue, when not to argue and many other such choices. What if I tell you that there are times when you are just giving up your choices just to impress others or the society or someone else.
Here are 8 such instances where you shouldn't be sorry for making the following decisions.
#1. Spending your money on things you love.
This may seem like an obvious one, but the fact is that many of us are criticized for the stuff that we buy with our money. If you are working hard to earn some decent money, then how YOU spend YOUR money is up to you. Maybe you would love to buy a new car, get a new house, get a boob-job, get a plastic surgery, travel around the world, or just buy a new XBOX, the dreams are infinite. But maybe you are thinking "What will my family and friends think if I spend my money on this? Maybe they'll think I'm still a kid". It doesn't matter.
Let me tell you about a friend of mine. My friend Sam bought a new Duke bike worth 1.5 lac INR because he liked it a lot (And I mean a LOT). But the day it was delivered, various comments were made like "was it really worth buying?", "What's the use of a sports bike in a city like this?","Maybe it was bought to impress your girlfriend" and other such negative comments.
He simply replied "It's my hard earned money. I spend on what I love. I love you guys hence I buy you stuff. Can't I buy something for myself, for once?"
No matter how much you spend on others, they'll still criticize you for how you spend your money.
#2. Trusting someone you shouldn't have.
This is a common one. And I am sure that everyone may have trusted someone in their life with things that they usually don't share with other people. Maybe it was your friend, or your parents, or your relatives or someone close. But at the end of the day, the truth was out.
I can't say for you people but if I am being honest here, I pretty much trust anyone whom I consider my friend.
After a few instances where my secrets were exposed I happened to trust no one. This lead to a "solitary confinement". It was then that I realized that maybe I was the one who was at fault. Maybe I shouldn't have trusted them in the first place. So, I came up with a plan to test the people whom I shouldn't trust.
The plan was simple. Simply let a random/fake secret be known to only one person at a time. And in the coming days if that secret is out in the open, then you know who the culprit is. This is a lesson worth learning.
#3.Being rude when someone doesn't respect you.
Okay! Before someone says "Being rude is bad instead you should maintain diplomacy", just hear me out. What if someone called you by "Hey, Shithead", "Hey, asshole", "You there! Son of a bitch", "Yo!! Dickhead", or some other insulting way, will you be calm and reply respectfully? Maybe you'll reply(in a rude way), or maybe you'll just ignore the person.
Let's take another example. Let's say that someone working under or along side you disrespected you. Or, maybe he doesn't respect you. Will you talk to them? I guess not. But what if they talk to you? In a not very respecting way? Then what? Maybe you'll try to talk to them in a calm manner. But there will come a time when you'll be thinking "Why the hell am I talking to this shitty person who can't respect someone". When this thought comes to your mind, don't act the same way as the person talking to you. Make a move reflecting his disrespectful manners. This may seem rude at first. But if the person has some dignity, he'll definitely understand his mistake and may either apologize for his behavior and/or start respecting you.
#4. Choosing people over things you love.
Say, you love to travel around. But let's say that by the time you are traveling, someone in your family or friend faces a medical emergency. What will you do then? You'll be thinking "WTF is this guy thinking? I'll definitely attend the emergency first. And when they are all well I can leave for the trip."
Yes. That the only way. Because people you love are always there for you.
All the things you love(travel, property, job, money, and other things) are just materialistic. They can't replace people close to you. You may have all the materialistic gains yet you'll be alone. On the other hand, even if you don't have all the materialistic gains yet have people close to you, you'll always feel that you have everything that you need. Also, what you should be treasuring, is the relationships you have with these people. Cherish them.
#5. The past that's gone.
This should not come as a surprise, but everyone at some point in time thought that maybe I shouldn't have wasted time complaining, gaming, playing, or some other thing. Maybe you did something horrible in your past. Or maybe you wasted a lot of time. Maybe what you thought would happen if you did what you did was not the same as you expected. Or maybe it's just something that you regret doing in the first place. What can you do about it now? I mean really, just what can you do about it now? The answer is simple. Nothing.
There's nothing you can do to change what you did in the past. You don't have a time machine to change the past (Or do you? If you do, please comment in the comment box :smile: )
What you CAN do is learn from your mistakes. If you did something horrible in the past try to repent for it. Maybe you just wasted a lot of time (like me). In that case, just make sure that you understand what lead to it and try not to waste your time in the future. Maybe you just didn't achieve the results you were hoping for after all that hard-work. Worry not. Just analyze where you went wrong. That may not seem like it, but it will help you identify where you can go wrong if you continue to do what you are doing in the future. The past is something you shouldn't be afraid of, instead, face it in your present and based on them make your future.
#6. Choosing happiness over money
There are times when I come across people who work at various MNCs and when asked about their salaries, reply boastfully in a 5-6 figure. Well, they are something. Aren't they? But, you see, when I ask them "do you love your job?", they usually answer "Well I earn XXX amount of salary. Why wouldn't I be happy?", or " Well I love the salary", or "Well honestly speaking, this is not what I wanted to work in but the salary is nice". People who do what they love, despite low income, are happy when compared to these MNC employees.
You might be thinking "what's wrong with the high income despite the happiness?" The thing is that it comes naturally when you know what you're doing is something that you love. Maybe you like to paint, blog, sing, review, criticize, dance, play sports, etc. It will give you a boost in your career against the same old 9-5 job. Maybe not initially, but definitely.
#7. Saying NO to something when you are not convinced
This a something many people say "Yes" thinking that "it's not bad if they are doing it too". Let's say that someone you know recently started taking drugs. After some time, many other people joined him. It may seem that he's cool and stuff. And one day, he approaches you to offer some drugs and join his cult or gang. A few of your friends have already joined his group. And they are trying to convince you to join their gang and indulge yourself with those drugs. What will you do? The first thought that crosses your mind will be either
(1) "I too will be cool like them if I do what they do"
OR
(2) "This will definitely ruin my life and I should probably stay away from these things"
If you think option (2), then you are on the right track in life. But if you choose the other option then there are some serious issues you need to work on.
There are many other situations where you should say "NO" if you are convinced that it may ruin your life. A few other examples of these situations are:
- alcohol
- drugs
- weed
- porn, etc.
#8. Thinking about yourself before others.
Okay. Finally, we are at the last lesson in this article. Many people think about what others might think if I did that or this? The answer is- They don't give a shit to what you do or you don't. People may think about what you did or didn't just for a second (maybe a minute). After that, they literally don't care. This is scientifically proven. Well, it is scientifically proven that if a person thinks about a thought he has for more than 17 seconds, it's stored in his brain. But the thing is that, by the time they start thinking about your actions, some other thought carries them away to some other topic.
It is in countries like India where people think "what will the society say about this?" before every action they take. Be it a marriage, death, birth, buying property, taking up any job or any other event.
It's your life. You are the sole decision maker of your life. You wanna live in a house surrounded by sharks, you can(though not suggested). You wanna get out into the space, sure. Why not? (If you can)
Jokes apart, you literally are the only person who can take the decisions related to your life. So, stop worrying what the world might think of you and start thinking what I should think of myself and what shall I do with my life is my right.
PS: I am new to Steemit. So pardon my formatting. I'll eventually learn to format perfectly. Also, do comment about the topic, and any suggestions for improvement.
Perfectly!
Thanks. Though there are many more instances that I'll be sharing in the future posts.
Great post! Thanks for sharing!
THanks for reading.