Seeing ourselves in others and others in ourselves
Our relationships with others affect how we see ourselves. At first, this section of the book ‘How to Simplify your Life’ seemed more like an etiquette guide, and encouraged networking as a way of expanding your horizons. Those who are shy and retiring would view this as anything but simple; however, those who seek isolation very often feel they have nothing of any true value to offer others.
Learning how to let go of envy was the most helpful tool because when we envy others we exaggerate their good qualities and minimise ours. No one has it all despite appearances; and no one is lacking in positive qualities and potential. We live in an age of envy where we are encouraged to focus so much on others through the media that we often neglect ourselves in terms of self-care and self-development. Envy may be the indicator of your frustrated creativity, so the answer is to seek opportunities to give expression to your creative side.
Similarly, anger usually derives from judgements about others; the more you judge others, the more you develop a tendency to want to fix their problems. But we all have problems and flaws. It is more fulfilling to focus on our own lives over which we have more control. Trying to fix others involves taking on unnecessary burdens which will weigh you down, and detract from your ability to enjoy the life you have.
The Power of One
If you’re one of those people who, like me, is always grumbling about not having enough time, then the real issue is not that you don’t have enough time but that you are not managing your tasks well – you are trying to pack too many tasks into the same amount of time which we all have – 24 hours in a day. You can overcome this tendency by getting rid of all the superfluous tasks from your to-do list and just focusing on ONE major task at a time. You must always resist the tyranny of the urgent – those random tidbits which compete for your attention, and focus on the most important task at hand. Only you can determine what that is since you alone decide your priorities.
This is an important element in keeping suicide at bay because by taking control of your time, you will gain a greater sense of achievement and of purpose for the future. You will no longer end each day thinking that your time was wasted and that your life is a waste of space.