Personal Growth Strategies #10: Defying Expectations

What happens when the society we grow up in fails to value our personal attributes? Many of our feelings of self-worth and self-esteem are shaped by the messages we receive from the world around us.

Some of these messages are overt: we know that society values wealth, power, efficiency, youth, and health. Now, imagine how it might feel to be poor, relatively powerless, or living with a chronic illness or disability in such a society.

Other messages are more subtle. While we claim to value diversity, children, and older people, our behaviours often tell a different story. If models and film stars are consistently portrayed as young, tall, and thin, wearing expensive clothing, and embodying society’s narrow definition of beauty, what does that tell those of us who do not fit that mould?

If children are teased at school for their accent or their parents' occupation, what do they learn about their own worth? It is crucial that all children feel proud of who they are—exactly as they are—and learn to respect differences from an early age.
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Children, especially young ones, understand the world through the expectations placed on them. They need to know they are loved, valued, and capable of rising above stereotypes to become the unique and valuable individuals they already are. Ultimately, we either rise to meet each other’s expectations or fall to them.