Introduction
Have you ever felt small and inferior to someone? Has someone you know managed to give you an inferiority complex just because they had something more than you?
Well, then, it goes without saying that that person is a snub and you are someone who doesn’t know yourself properly.
If you did, you would have never bought someone else’s opinion about you.
Franklin Roosevelt’s wife, and the former first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt spoke these powerful words ‘no one can make you inferior without your consent’.
The phrase has been quoted several times since then and has become an important part of personality development and self-motivation lectures.
Although there is no specific accreditation to the quote, it is believed that these words were spoken by the former diplomat when an awkward event occurred in 1935.
It so happened that the Secretary of Labor in the Roosevelt administration was invited to give a speech at the University of California, Berkley on the Charter Day of the school.
This displeased the host of the event who thought that the speech should have not been given by political figures.
She refused to serve the event as a host.
When Eleanor Roosevelt was asked to give her opinion on the matter, she said that a person who feels superior my making another person inferior is a snub.
But to do so, that person should find such a person who can be made to feel inferior.
To feel inferior to someone is the work of your own mind and intellect.
If you do feel inferior to someone, then there is something wrong with you.
There is a thin line of difference between being vowed by someone or praising someone to feeling inferior or worthless in front of someone.
If you have ever fallen victim to such thoughts, then you need to analyze the situation and the person again. Did that person intentionally make you feel lowly or worthless?
Read on to know how to tackle such people and such issues.
No One Has The Right To Make You Feel Worthless Without Your Consent
‘Without your consent’ has a big meaning in this phrase. People come and go in your lives.
Some are good, some are friendly, some are motivating, some are inspirational, some are mean, some are weird, while some are snubs.
It is these snubs that you have to ignore and take lightly.
They may have more power, fame, beauty, or money, but if they manage to make you feel inferior with their rude words, indifference, or actions, then you need to understand that they are hollow inside.
Some other times, you may feel inferior or worthless in front of some people who are genuinely nice but are more gifted than you.
They may not intentionally put you down, yet their actions or words make you feel inferior. In such cases, all you can do is to try to become like them or just go away from them.
But feeling worthless and lowly is just in your hands whether someone does it intentionally or unknowingly.
It is your mind and heart after all, and only you have the power to control it. Why feel inferior at all?
By doing so, will you get their fate? Or will you gain sympathy from people?
You have to understand that God makes each one different and gifts everyone a different set of talents and virtues. You need to make the best use of your virtues and rise above others.
When you start focusing on this fact, you will stop wallowing yourself in self-pity.
Remember that no one can love yourself more than you and no one knows you better than you do.
There are some people who feel good after demotivating others. These people are mean and hollow inside.
They are sadists who need to see someone sad because of them as it gives them a sense of joy.
The fact is that such people are not happy or contented from within. It is these people who need help.
The world is full of such snubs. But you have to be strong and know yourself well. Others’ opinions about you should never change your own opinion of yourself.
What To Do When Someone Tries To Make You Feel Inferior
When someone tries to make you feel inferior, you have got to do a few things before you completely ignore them and move ahead:
Introspect
Think about those words or actions that made you feel inferior. For example, did someone make fun of you because you are black-skinned?
If so, can you change it? Is it in your hands? There are certain things that are not in your hands.
You are not responsible for such things. In another example, did someone make fun of you because you did not do well in exams?
Well, this is something that is in your hands, you can work harder and shut that person forever or you can choose to ignore and concentrate on your other talents like arts, music, or sports.
If you want to sit and brood about something, then there is no end to it. But the day you fall in love with yourself, nothing and no one can ever make you feel inferior.
Think
When you feel inferior about something someone said to you, you need to think.
Think why those words or actions made you feel worthless yourself?
Have you ever felt so before too? Do you believe in that person’s opinion about you? Can you change it or rather, do you want to change it?
Thinking will help you clear your mind and get answers to a few questions.
These will give you peace of mind. Think about how you can counter those words by proving yourself better in some other field.
For example, there was once a negro janitor working in a hospital.
A few nurses always managed to make him feel inferior to them because of his skin color and because of the nature of his work. But it did not affect him at all. Then one day, there was a major leakage in one of the pipes in the hospital and no other plumber could fix it.
Eventually, the same nurses approached the janitor who fixed the issue. So, remember, your own virtues and talents can make you feel superior to such people.
Do You Think Its True? If It Is True, How Would You Tackle It?
If someone has said something to you, you need to sit and analyze. Think about whether it is true or not. If it is, instead of feeling sad or inferior, give it a quick fix.
Can you do something about it? If no, then ignore and carry on happily with your life.
Or if you can do something about it, then do it and shut that person up as soon as possible.
If It Is Utterly False, How Would You Tackle It?
No one knows you better than you do yourself. If someone has said something about you that you know is not true, then it should not bother you at all.
But if the consequences of the false words are too much, you can fight for it and put up your case. If it is not important, move on with your life.
Are You Getting Depressed About It?
It is quite easy to buy someone’s opinion of yourself and get depressed and feel lowly. But that means you have allowed the other person to win.
The other person’s main intention was to make you feel inferior, and you have let them succeed.
Why let someone make you feel inferior at all? Don’t you know about your capabilities?
Getting depressed or complexed about it is beside the point, especially, when you do not let those words linger in your mind for long.
You can either make that person ashamed of his own words by proving him wrong, or you can show that person that his words did not affect you at all in life.
Smile and laugh so much the next time that person walks by, that he/she will begin to doubt their opinion of you.
Let your actions speak louder than words and let your happiness and smile reflect how much you love yourself.
Conclusion
You should take such opinions and judgments in a positive way and let it not affect your own love for yourself.
If anything is worth a grab from those harsh words, take it sportingly like a lesson.
Be a learner in life and not a depressed brooder. Lastly, none can make you feel inferior about yourself if you feel you are superior to all.
Let that thought always remain with you in a humble way.
Did my article make sense to you? Was I able to convince you of this? Are you one of those going through a troubled or emotional breakdown?
Do leave us a comment in our comment section and let us take it forward from there.
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