Learning To Laugh At Yourself
Some of the most together people I know have learned to maneuver through life’s journey and still be at peace with what is going on around them have the ability to laugh at themselves without an ounce of judgement. They are great teachers and if you are fortunate enough to know someone like that, hang out with them a lot, for they will change you for the better.
With all the ridiculousness of us not realizing humanity who all of us all, regardless of color, religious or spiritual beliefs, social standing or power. Learning to laugh at yourself is the simplest path to inner peace then possibly spreading out all those within your living arena. It also helps us be more compassionate, resilient and kind to yourself. To learn to laugh at yourself, you must have a well-developed sense of self-awareness. But even more important is a peak level of self-acceptance. If we were are lucky enough to have grown up in an environment that encourages these abilities, then you find it easy to come by…even through the biggest life challenges. If you were not so blessed, it is something that has to be worked on every day and learn to put great effort into developing them.
We live in a society where judgement is a form of sport. Social media trolls, jealous friends and co-workers to name a few. Learning to laugh at oneself, even after hearing the most God-awful thing said about you has one key factor that is an absolute. If you can master this, then you will be able to find the humor in just about everything that does not go well for you. That one thing is….”to not be attached to the good opinion of others”. When you can learn to laugh at what others have judged you for or even something stupid you actually did, you are making a universal statement loud and clear that your opinion of yourself is more valued than someone else’s. And that is exactly how it should be.
Many people are frightened and controlled by these judgments and believe that pleasing others and accepting another’s viewpoint of who they think you are somehow truthfully defines you and pushes you to change. Learning to laugh at yourself is a way to become independent of other’s opinions.
Here are some tips from the professionals to put that laughter into play.
1. Get a balanced perspective on who you really are and who you want to be. Get rid of the “should be” from your thinking and behavior. What makes us unique as human beings is that we are NOT the same. If you know you are OCD about something, then embrace it if it does no harm. Think mailbox scene of Sally mailing a letter in the movie, “When Harry Met Sally”. Everyone will want you to be the way they want you to be but if you are comfortable with your idiosyncrasies, then you can just laugh about others being uncomfortable with your habit.
2. Develop a healthy self-interest in who you are, what you do and how you do it. To learn how to laugh at yourself, you have to turn down the narcissism, which only produces frustration in oneself and turn up the healthy self-interest. Narcissism has to do with a feeling of personal pride based on another’s opinion of you. Healthy self-interest is all about trying to seek out the best for ourselves before we look for it from others.
3. Be kind to yourself when you are judging a situation where you might have screwed up. We can be our harshest critics and if we do this too often, our self-esteem will take the hit. Don’t demand from yourself more than what you are capable of. Saying, doing, or thinking something wrong isn’t a life-threatening sin. It is a weakness that makes us more human. Making mistakes gives us the opportunity to be human who is designed to constantly seek growth and improvement.
4. Learn to just count on yourself to understand and get who you are. No one knows you better than you, so don’t let that inner voice not support you. Be quick to forgive yourself and try your damnedest not to go blaming others for how you feel about yourself. Being excessively harsh on oneself only leads to emotional distress.
5. Exercise the many opportunities to laugh every day. Laughter is wonderful for emotional health and helps us to learn in life to go with the flow and release those God awful control issues. It helps us take life less seriously allowing it to flow more spontaneously. Learning to laugh at yourself is fundamental to good mental health and helps us socially be aware of others vulnerabilities. When we understand that arrogance and pride of always trying to be right and to be on the winning side of the any team, we will understand and accept it just continually makes us miserable. We can then accept that self humility makes us less sensitive to criticism, teasing, bullying and other people’s opinions.
Laughter can bring lightness to any situation, regardless of how emotionally heavy the situation is. As an emotional addiction counselor, I use my intuitive gifts to see behind the ego mask and have found that my snarky sense of humor has the ability to lighten their perception of what is really going on and why. It is never at their expense but always puts things into perspective of how they can laugh at the not so bright choices they have made in the past and bring those same tools into the present situation. Laughter does not always have to be about the heavy situation but it can raise the vibrations to let go of the anger, judgement or frustration in the moment. More laughter becomes a muscle the more you use, the more it becomes your ‘go to’ place of dealing with almost any challenging situation. Plus, those who laugh a lot are fun to be around and learning to laugh at yourself makes you wonderful company for yourself and others.
‘Courage Sans Peur’ (Courage w/o Fear)
To Contact Susan Z Rich:
Website: www.szrwhitewings.com
Email: szrich@aol.com
407–862–6902
Author of Soul Windows..Secrets From The Divine on Amazon
Emotional Addiction Counselor and Intuitive
Author of Soul Windows..Secrets From The Divine on Amazon
