I’m an observer of human nature, some may say nosy, some may say voyeuristic but the truth is, I like to know where I am with people.
The rush judgements I’ve made in the past mean I’ve left myself open to manipulation. There’s no other way of putting it.
The reason you have to trust yourself first is manipulation happens when you doubt yourself, you don’t trust the evidence of your own eyes and, most dangerously, you’ll blame yourself and make excuses for other peoples’ behaviour, no matter how destructive it is.
Standing up for yourself can feel exceptionally awkward and you’d be surprised how common peoples’ feelings of guilt can surface.
Throw that out of the window.
You have to trust yourself before you can trust other people. Why? Because life is inside out. You have unique needs and unique gifts, that’s the way it is for everyone. You have your perspective, you have your preferences and that is good.
Once you trust yourself, you can meet people evenly and calmly.
Sounds good to me, sound good to you?