Monday, January 27, 2014

Judge Your Neighbor...

Deep in Packers territory.
I am judgmental. I don't like it but I am. It's easy for my mind to put people in boxes such as controlling or annoying then leave them in it, even if their actions prove the contrary. From a sociological perspective, judgment is a natural part of existence. Hundreds, if not thousands of years ago our ability to make a snap judgment if something was life threatening or not was what saved our lives. Fast forward to today and the judgment mechanism appears to be malfunctioning. The defense mechanism that once served to keep us alive now sees someone with messy hair and screams lazy or sees someone with a headscarf and yells terrorist. This dangerous way of thinking, that someone who doesn't look like how you want them to or that how they look causes fear or insecurity makes it seem as though their life is less important than yours. It's just not so. No one life is more important or more right than any other, therefore, it is each and every one of our jobs to continually challenge the stereotypes and judgments we hold.

Judge away.
Byron Katie, a woman who has done extensive research into judgments and their negative effects on our lives made a worksheet called "Judge Your Neighbor." This worksheet is not only something I've given to clients but have done myself and it is one of the best tools I've found in gaining awareness into the limiting beliefs we hold. The consciousness journey begins with acknowledging that maybe, just maybe, you don't have all the answers and that maybe some of the answers you do have from your church, family, or schooling are not the only right way to live and behave. The answer is in the question, so keep asking questions.

Top o' the marnin' to ya!