Appreciation Go-Between

[Self-Pity - V]

The opposite of self-pity is not stoicism.
Or inner strength.
Or mental toughness.

The opposite of self-pity is self-appreciation. And it takes practices. (Trust me, I’m terrible at it.)

Self-pity and under-appreciation are fellows, but we often miss how they relate.

When our team, family, and coworkers don’t appreciate what we’re offering, we can feel pity. When our clients or friends don’t recognize our effort, we can feel pity. When our colleagues, patients, and church members aren't thankful for our investment, we can feel pity.

But there’s a go-between. Standing in the middle of others' lack of appreciation and our self-pity is a “person” wearing bright yellow, holding a traffic sign that reads STOP on one side and SLOW on the other. He (or she) literally controls the flow of traffic.

That person is you and your own affirmation.

You either echo the lack of appreciation and criticism of your coworkers or you sincerely affirm your own effort.

You either repeat the criticism of your clients or you learn from it and reshape it into positive, productive feedback.

You either restate your colleagues rude comments or your reframe them as compliments.

Self-pity and under-appreciation are fellows.
But there’s a go-between.
And it’s you.
Let’s practice genuinely appreciating ourself.