by Linda-Ann Stewart

As they were growing up, Grace’s friend Hallie put her down at every opportunity, undermined her successes, and accused Grace of “Feeling she was better than everyone else.” To try to reduce Hallie’s resentment, Grace stopped sharing the goals she achieved and her accomplishments.

In essence, she hid her authenticity to make Hallie feel less threatened. It didn’t work. Hallie could still see Grace’s light, and did her best to extinguish it. Nothing Grace did could have made her friend feel better about herself or eliminate her attacks.

When you’re authentic and let your inner light shine, it’s going to make some people uncomfortable. They’re insecure within themselves and they resent that you aren’t insecure, too. Creative and sensitive people pick up on that and try to deflect or reduce it by minimizing their achievements or becoming invisible.

Understand that nothing that you do, or don’t do, is going to remedy their anxiety. It’s an issue within them that they’ve focused onto you. You’re not responsible for their pain, for healing it, for making them feel comfortable with themselves or with you. There’s no reason for you to cater to their insecurities to try to make them treat you better.

When you close off your light, you do so out of fear. You’re judging yourself by old standards that don’t mean anything anymore. As a result, you condemn yourself and hide to avoid retribution. You’re simply reacting to old messages that have been installed in your mind. Your fear comes from filtering your current situation through outgrown situations from the past.

By not breaking free from your fear, you’re telling yourself that you don’t feel confident in handling the challenges of your life. However, those ideas came from a time and place that’s long gone. You no longer have to abandon yourself to stay safe. Now you can accept your power and authority.

Copyright 2013 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved