Imogen Browne
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Proud Member
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Accept your Imperfections as a means to finding greater balance
What is about ‘perfection’ that makes us want to strive for it? Is it worth striving for?
My goal for February was to be more willing to let go of judgements, but the journey turned out to be far more complex than I had imagined. What started out as an exercise trying not to judge others, turned into the start of a learning curve of not judging myself too harshly.
At the beginning, the sequence of thoughts went something like this:
Being more aware of my own critical thinking has revealed some of my own flaws and weaknesses – impatience being the primary one. It struck me that my negative reaction was showing a fault within me and the other person’s action was largely irrelevant.
Do you ever come to a self-realisation and then come down hard on yourself? It’s natural, but why do we react in this way? We all have weaknesses, likes or dislikes, so why shy away from them? BECAUSE we want to be perfect, or at least, seen to be perfect. Heaven forbid that we or anyone else realises that we are human and have human foibles!
What is about ‘perfection’ that makes us want to strive for it? Is it worth striving for?
My goal for February was to be more willing to let go of judgements, but the journey turned out to be far more complex than I had imagined. What started out as an exercise trying not to judge others, turned into the start of a learning curve of not judging myself too harshly.
At the beginning, the sequence of thoughts went something like this:
- Careful! That sounds like a judgement …
- Yes, but they/he/she …
- No, it’s still a judgement.
- Have you considered what this reaction says about you?
- EEK! It could suggest a character flaw.
Being more aware of my own critical thinking has revealed some of my own flaws and weaknesses – impatience being the primary one. It struck me that my negative reaction was showing a fault within me and the other person’s action was largely irrelevant.
Do you ever come to a self-realisation and then come down hard on yourself? It’s natural, but why do we react in this way? We all have weaknesses, likes or dislikes, so why shy away from them? BECAUSE we want to be perfect, or at least, seen to be perfect. Heaven forbid that we or anyone else realises that we are human and have human foibles!
We tend to come down hard on ourselves because we are disappointed in ourselves and hope that not too many other people have noticed our flaw/s. Instead of being upset about our imperfection we should use the knowledge to improve ourselves.
Is perfection something we should strive for? You can poo-poo the concept and say that perfection is over-rated, but still, many of us have the idea crossing our minds all too frequently. We want to be the perfect mother, wife, father, friend, child … You put immense pressure on yourself when you try to be ‘perfect’ and nine times out of ten you set yourself up for failure as it is often ‘unobtainium’.
Rather work both at being good at something while also embracing the various little faults in life. Our own bits of imperfection are the elements that give us individuality and distinction. Without our small flaws, we wouldn’t be individuals at all!
I cannot help but recall words from one of Leonard Cohen’s songs: ‘There’s a crack in everything / That’s how the light gets in’.
Having a fault is not a crime; instead, being aware of it allows you to cast light on it and grow as a person as you decide how to deal with it in the future.
As I travel this road towards greater balance, I plan to embrace my foibles and allow my newly acquired knowledge help foster personal growth. I hope you will join me on this journey.
Is perfection something we should strive for? You can poo-poo the concept and say that perfection is over-rated, but still, many of us have the idea crossing our minds all too frequently. We want to be the perfect mother, wife, father, friend, child … You put immense pressure on yourself when you try to be ‘perfect’ and nine times out of ten you set yourself up for failure as it is often ‘unobtainium’.
Rather work both at being good at something while also embracing the various little faults in life. Our own bits of imperfection are the elements that give us individuality and distinction. Without our small flaws, we wouldn’t be individuals at all!
I cannot help but recall words from one of Leonard Cohen’s songs: ‘There’s a crack in everything / That’s how the light gets in’.
Having a fault is not a crime; instead, being aware of it allows you to cast light on it and grow as a person as you decide how to deal with it in the future.
As I travel this road towards greater balance, I plan to embrace my foibles and allow my newly acquired knowledge help foster personal growth. I hope you will join me on this journey.
2020: A path towards greater balance, peace and tranquillity
My new year’s resolution has been shaped by a shower gel! Let me explain: during the festive season I tried a new shower gel, and as I studied the label, the wording struck a chord with me … ‘The Ritual of Dao … bringing peace and tranquillity into your life’.
Wow! Since opening my shiatsu studio late in 2018 I have been striving to bring greater balance (peace and tranquillity) into the lives of my customers and into my own life. This concept of Dao needed to be explored.
Doa (sometimes spelt ‘Tao’ but pronounced ‘dao’) literally means a path or a way but I’m afraid the definition gets very complicated as each individual is encouraged to find their own path. But I am on a path to find out more, to embrace balance, peace and tranquillity in 2020. And I hope you will join me on this journey.
My new year’s resolution has been shaped by a shower gel! Let me explain: during the festive season I tried a new shower gel, and as I studied the label, the wording struck a chord with me … ‘The Ritual of Dao … bringing peace and tranquillity into your life’.
Wow! Since opening my shiatsu studio late in 2018 I have been striving to bring greater balance (peace and tranquillity) into the lives of my customers and into my own life. This concept of Dao needed to be explored.
Doa (sometimes spelt ‘Tao’ but pronounced ‘dao’) literally means a path or a way but I’m afraid the definition gets very complicated as each individual is encouraged to find their own path. But I am on a path to find out more, to embrace balance, peace and tranquillity in 2020. And I hope you will join me on this journey.
The one universal principle of Taoism is that we are all interconnected and we should develop a system of beliefs, attitudes and practices to support our personal natures. This set of practices aids us keep the mind, body and spirit engaged and strong, leading to inner peace.
Taoism suggests you explore you ‘essence’ or personal nature by following implementing four practices:
On this path to greater balance and peace, why don’t you join me in a journey during February, by selecting one of the practices and implementing them into your daily routine? As I can be cynical and critical, I am going to attempt to let go of judgments … of my family, my friends, my community … and myself.
Let’s take one day at a time with the ultimate goal of bringing greater peace and understanding to our lives
Taoism suggests you explore you ‘essence’ or personal nature by following implementing four practices:
- learn to trust your intuition.
- Let go of judgments that hold you back,
- remove conflict and anger from your relationships,
- be kind to yourself.
On this path to greater balance and peace, why don’t you join me in a journey during February, by selecting one of the practices and implementing them into your daily routine? As I can be cynical and critical, I am going to attempt to let go of judgments … of my family, my friends, my community … and myself.
Let’s take one day at a time with the ultimate goal of bringing greater peace and understanding to our lives
