Breaking the Approval Addiction

Do you live under a burden of guilt and condemnation…feeling unworthy and insecure? Are you a people-pleaser, always looking for the approval of others?

If the answer to any of these is yes, then I want to help you move beyond those feelings. Why? Because they not only affect your personal relationships, but also your ability to be promoted. And I can tell you from personal experience, they certainly steal your joy and your peace.

I believe there are two states that can cause us to desire the approval of people: being emotionally wounded and being caught in a pit of self-pity.

Wounds That Won’t Heal

Many have grown up in an environment of sexual and verbal abuse, and believe they are wounded beyond healing. Worse, these same individuals project the actions of those that hurt them on others. Because of this we often find it difficult to admit to ourselves or anyone else that we are anything less than perfect. However, once we accept ourselves for who we are, we can refrain from being oversensitive to what people think about us and feeling bad about ourselves. We don't have to be addicted to their approval.

Self-pity: The Self-curse

When we’re living to try to please others, we see our weaknesses as “curses.” They’re the things in our lives that we just can’t do anything about and will surely be our downfall in the end. It’s easy to see how this way of thinking can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. However, reframing your story and a good dose of positive self-talk can lead to your overcoming the need to please others.