Ataraxia: A state of freedom from emotional disturbance and anxiety; tranquility.
What would life be like if we were liberated from the opinions of others; how would our liberated lives and actions differentiate themselves from the way we act and live when we do let the opinions of others affect us?
A lot of people spend a good amount of their lives worrying about what others think of them; consequently, many people spend a lot of their time not being themselves. Essentially, people are continuously letting others control how they think, feel, and conduct themselves. The worst part about it is, we are often misconstrued about what people may or may not be thinking. We cannot get into the minds of others, and we will never know the exact thoughts that are enclosed in the minds of others with 100% accuracy; many of us know this, yet still, we get caught up into ruminating about what people think about us. Why are we so caught up with the opinion of others though? Why do the opinions of others take so much precedence in our lives? Moreover, why do we often give the opinions of others more value than our own opinions of ourselves? Where did we ever get the idea that what we think and feel is of little value?
There are copious amounts of people who experience emotional disturbance and anxiety by cogitating on what people think about them. People do things they never would do in their right mind when they are focused on what people think:
1. People start spending money they don’t have to impress others.
2. People engage in dangerous behaviors they normally wouldn’t to fit in.
3. People become pushovers.
4. People stay in relationships with people that they know are wrong for them.
5. People get degrees they hate.
6. People go into careers they loathe, but are respected by others.
The list goes on and on…
The sooner we become liberated of the opinion of others, the sooner we will experience a life that is more satisfying and enjoyable. We only have one life to live; choose to live a life that is true to yourself, and not true to someone else. Experience Ataraxia.