Who We Are Matters

Julie Stead

“What We Know Matters, But WHO WE ARE Matters More.”
- Brené Brown

This quote speaks loudly to me! And it’s exactly what I have been writing about in my book this week… I’m talking about compassion, and what I’ve learnt about this concept.

I used to think that compassion was just about being nice and kind to everyone… but it is so much more than that… and actually requires a lot of courage! It’s about facing challenges in life and taking action to overcome them… It’s about understanding what motivates us as individuals but also how we’ve evolved to become social creatures with an ability to empathise with others. And in life, we need compassion alongside education! Yes, education is important, of course, but I feel there’s an unbalanced notion that intellect is singly paramount!

We are taught through school (at least I was back in my school days!) that education is THE most important thing. To succeed in life we need to do well in school… we need to get good grades… we need to succeed academically… yet this doesn’t suit everybody, and that is NOT a failure! Do children get enough recognition when they show caring and compassionate gestures towards others, not just for their academic achievements? And where is the emphasis on who we are… how we approach life… how we treat others… and what really matters to us?

This authenticity is a key component to what’s going to make us truly happy… and isn’t that the fundamental meaning of life? It’s what I’m trying to instil in my children – that yes it is important to try hard and learn! But who we are and how we treat others is just as important. Trying (tirelessly) to create that balance between encouraging them to work hard at school but not lose sight of being kind, caring and considerate individuals… At the end of the day, how we show ourselves love and compassion, is the cornerstone for how we offer this to others… and it’s thought that the more compassionate we are, the fewer psychological difficulties we are likely to experience.

To cultivate more self-compassion we can:

Practice mindfulness, breathing exercises and meditation.
Develop our self-awareness.
Begin to notice our thoughts and deliberately interrupt any harsh self-talk; moving from self-criticism to self-compassion.

So, go on, see if you can show yourself a little more love and compassion… and just watch the ripple effect that follows 💗

Take care & much love,

Julie x

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You can find me here:

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/jules.stead

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-stead-mhwriter/

Substack:

https://wavesofthought.substack.com/

(A bi-weekly blog where I share journaling musings alongside knowledge and insight to acknowledge and promote emotional wellbeing)