Checks and Balances

 

When we see ourselves in other people, it can be a great opportunity for growth if we are willing to work on it.

Most of us have probably come across the universal wisdom that people who irritate us the most are expressing qualities that we ourselves may have. This is why family members can be so vexing for so many of us -- we see ourselves in them, and vice versa. This isn't always true, of course, but when it is, it's a real opportunity for growth if we can acknowledge it, because it is infinitely easier to change ourselves than it is to try to change another person, which is never a good idea. Even if we look and find that we are not engaging in the same behavior that we view as negative, we can still learn from it. The truth is, human nature is universal, and we share many of the same tendencies. 

What we see in others can always help us understand ourselves more deeply. Having the ability to see something in another person, and automatically bring this observation back to ourselves, is like having a built-in system of checks and balances that enables us to be continually engaged in self-exploration and behavior change. When we see behavior we don't like, we can make a concerted effort to weed it out of ourselves, and when we see behavior we do like, we can let it inspire us to engage in imitation. Through this process, we read our environment and let it influence us to bring out the best in ourselves. Boom!

Inspired by DailyOm and Posted by Rachel G.