Looking Good or Feeling Good?

If not all, but certainly after most of our actions, conversations, behaviors, gestures in a day, there’s a self-talk within if you ended up looking good or not and the answer most often is a Yes because the actions were well thought through.

We try everything possible in the text book that is right, moral, ethical, acceptable, universal, and perhaps tick every box that’s accepted to most to make us Look Good in society or at workplace.

But despite so much righteous approach towards everything we do, why the so much Looking Good outside doesn’t translate into an equal amount Feeling Good inside. Or if I were to put it a bit bluntly, then the equation between Looking Good and Feeling has rather gone negatively correlated in current times.

From our childhood days, we can recall tons of Feeling Good memories than those of Looking Good. But as we have grown over the years, I strongly believe that this phenomena has turned rather upside down as memories of Looking good far exceed those of Feeling Good, possibly because external world has overtaken the internal one.

I’m not referring to classic Head-Heart conflicts, rather I’m referring to those cross roads in life where one’s Head and Heart are so perfectly aligned that they even decide to challenge those deep rooted belief systems, cultures to break the patterns.

Whether personal or professional, we often such face clashes related to age old cultures, beliefs and mindsets at workplace or in personal lives. And in those disconnects, there are two equally strong, right but confronting ‘Truths’ from the perspective of both - The external world vs. Your inner voice.

If you conform to the one as per the popular belief systems and don’t challenge, it makes you Look Beautiful to the external world ...but if you follow the inner voice of self, then that makes you Feel good internally, but carries the risk of Looking bad outside.

Theoretically, it sounds so cool and easy to choose the truth that makes you Feel Good from inside but answer yourselves if the choice is that easy to make due to various practicalities of life and intertwined relationships.

...and even after one decides to respect self over others, the journey from Looking Good to Feeling Good is no cake walk as it has its own phases of looking bad, criticisms and risks of losing valuable relationships, possessions on the way.

Please don’t misunderstand this blog as a serious one rather it’s positively meant to knock-knock on some of your deep buried truths that you know will make you ‘feel good’ but they have somewhere given up to the truths of ‘Looking Good’ in all these years.

...It could be as simple as a passion that you always wanted to pursue for years but stuck somewhere else to look good due to family or peer pressure

...it could be a workplace culture that you don’t relate to coz you are an entrepreneur within or perhaps don’t relate to the people around but dragging yourself in that job to make ends meet

...or it could even be a relationship that’s been in a crisis in all these years but one’s stuck to look good in the society and not disturb a beautiful but fake picture

We all know that some of the biggest innovations, cultures, beliefs, revolutions, disruptions from history were started or rather redefined by those who didn’t look good at the beginning. Some of the prominent names such as Trump, Dhoni, Musk, Modi or a number of unknown 1%’ers like them haven’t had a great Looking Good journeys. But despite all criticisms, rejections and opposition from many, the thirst for Feeling Good and self-belief far outweighed the fear of looking bad. In the end some cracked and many didn’t, but who cares.

The truth of Looking good provides an access to make a great connect with outer world, garner support and acceptability but may have its own share of living with deception, inner conflicts coz pleasing others takes precedence over self.

....but following the truth that makes you Feel Good establishes an authentic connect with Self, get your inner peace but has its own share of external ramifications, oppositions and at times standing alone.

It’s very difficult to point out a clear right or wrong in such situations as both the Truths are right, logical from their own perspectives.

I’m still learning while expressing this on the way but one thing that I’ve understood is that at the end, it’s a personal decision on which truth you chose to live through for the rest of your life, be at peace with and not regret inside, and then there’s nothing right or wrong beyond it.

And if that clarity is there with one’s inner voice, then it’s enough to take that leap of faith into the unknown, risking that life of Looking Good in all these years, and just saying to one's self - Apna Time Aaegaa na :)

Take off the mask ... live meaningfully!

Vinkal

#motivation #HeadHeart #Happiness #self-respect #relationships