Who gets your votes?
A friend and I were talking recently how much energy gets wasted when we try to live in a way that won’t attract judgement from others. How futile it is, when we are speaking our truth and fully expressing ourselves, to hope that we will never encounter negative opinions.
Critique can be valuable- sometimes we need to be reminded of things we may be missing, to feel humbled. So instead of shutting everyone out, a useful way of distancing yourself while still remaining open might be to decide who gets a “vote” in your life. Whose opinion is beneficial for you to take in right now?
Let certain people criticize all they want- they don’t get a vote. This is not about covering our ears until they leave. We may still respect and love them, and might decide in the future to grant them a place on our jury. However, for whatever reason, right now it is simply not a useful exchange.