It takes a lot of living to learn that a person’s attention on you is momentary unless you do something drastic to attract it. The best way to go unnoticed is to live your life without worrying about what others think. The more you worry about how you are perceived by others, the more likely you are to make a wrong impression.
For example, I’ve been following a couple of interesting court cases lately and it is mesmerizing watching the accused person.
In one case, the accused told the Judge she was really sorry. The Judge told her “based on your behavior before and after you were caught and your statements here in Court, it seems as though you are sorry you got caught, not sorry you did it.” Then the Judge sentenced her accordingly.
The other case is still ongoing so who knows what will happen, but it is a really heartbreaking case and the three plaintiffs are pretty damaged by what the defendant did to them. The defendant and his possee seem to think he will get away with it. Note: I did not say they think he didn’t do it, just that he will get away with it, it scares me that he just might.
The truth is really a fleeting quality in a lot of people and it leaves me wondering why they think so little of themselves that they would rather lie than be honest and actually live a happy life. Lies just eat away at you, and I really don’t have the energy to keep track of some untruths and having to make sure I keep them consistent or hiding things. When the lies are discovered it’s not pretty, but if I’ve kept a secret that I shouldn’t have, it’s actually a relief to be found out. That would make me a poor criminal.
However, it takes a lot more courage to tell the truth than it does to tell a lie. Why? Because people suffer from a mistaken belief that if they tell the truth about their actions, others will discover the deep dark hatred they have for themselves.
Here’s a secret about people: no matter who you are or what you do, people really don’t care that much, most people are too busy worrying about themselves or their day to judge others. Interestingly, I’ve discovered that the people who spend the most time judging others are those who have the most self loathing. They have to find fault in everyone else to keep from looking at themselves.
In a podcast that made me cry last fall, Ron Miscavige Sr. (RIP) said “some people would rather take a bullet to the head than admit they are wrong.” That is one of the saddest truths I’ve ever heard.
Life is a lot shorter than we want to believe. Why waste any of it pretending to be something you are not?
I remember when I first heard that from Ron Mascavige. I thought, how true I have found that to be. Love this!
Agreed 🙂