How did you treat yourself the last time you screwed up? When you dropped the ball or something didn’t go as planned…
How did you treat yourself in that moment? Were you loving? Offering kindness and support? Or did you instinctively resort to harshness and criticism?
Quinlan Walther sees these questions as a way to gauge your healing progress.
How far along the journey are you, and are you aware of your surroundings?
I wasn’t conscious of any of this when I first heard her ask these questions.
And I’m struck by this insight: the lack of care and self-compassion we show ourselves in moments of challenge indicates incomplete healing. The harshness we direct inward signals we still need to heal from the constructs around us and the pain those constructs have inflicted throughout our lives.
I love how being present and aware of your critical voice can illuminate how different life could be from another perspective—one that chooses kindness over judgment.
Let’s commit to deeper healing so that when we inevitably face another mistake, compassion becomes our default response, fostering beautiful growth and profound understanding instead of shame.
