Most of us demonstrate a hard-hearted refusal to forgive ourselves, even for relatively minor mistakes. In fact, we often spend years criticizing ourselves for things we did way back in childhood. Our self esteem can potentially carry wounds dating all the way back to the cradle.
Of course, it's important to forgive ourselves for errors we commit. We know this at the conscious level... but...
When was the last time you caught yourself going back over old mistakes and berating yourself all over again? Maybe you said something like "Okay, that's over now. It's in the past so I release it. It's completely gone."
Well, maybe you did. But it's more likely you did just the opposite.
If you treated your spouse or your child with the same lack of forgiveness you give yourself, how long would you keep your family? It's not so hard to forgive your child when she makes a mistake, but what about the child you were when you made the same kind of error?
It's high time that child within you got the same consideration and forgiveness, too, isn't it?
It is often said that love must begin at home. How much closer to home can you get than forgiving yourself? How would your self esteem change under such forgiveness?
A generosity of spirit toward yourself is the beginning of a comfortable peace within your own life. Now, I don't mean you should dismiss every mistake as "cute" or ignore your own obvious need to grow and learn. That kind of cavalier behavior is not self-love. That's what you'd do if you wanted to turn yourself into a spoiled brat.
It may take a bit of thinking and re5A8flection to become really clear on the difference between generosity of spirit and self-indulgence.
And while we hold ourselves too inflexibly to some harsh standards, in other areas we let ourselves off far too easily.
Overslept and got to work late? That's okay, I'll just tell them it was a traffic jam. Broke a promise to your family? That's okay, they'll accept a good story if I make it sort of plausible.
So on the one hand, we fiercely torment ourselves over some mistakes, while on the other, we let ourselves slide by with endless streams of excuses (otherwise known as lies).
In neither case are we being fair and balanced to the one person we spend all of our time with. There is a more comfortable way to live, however, and it involves changing how we judge the various parts of our self. This in turn frees up our self esteem to blossom and flourish in healthy, balanced ways.
For more information on how to shape your future, download the free PDF report "It's All Good Luck - Five No-Fail Tips for Turning Bad Luck into Good... Every Time" at http://www.more-luck.com/luckyreport/
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