Like a badge

It’s tempting to try to use our weaknesses as an excuse. After all, weaknesses are obstacles that can seriously derail our plans. Coming to terms with these obstacles is the first step in any strategy to live with them.

But we could get too comfortable with our flaws, to the point where we pretend to be proud of them. Are flaws really something to be proud of?

You see this kind of behavior often in social media, where people are not afraid to share every detail of their lives in exchange for some likes. People will often joke about their quirks, insecurities, past mistakes, or mental health issues. Admitting these things about ourselves gives us (at least) some feeling of control over them. Also, sharing these admissions earns us some attention from others. In other words, we’ve found a way to take something that should be a pitfall and turn it into a social reward.

One obvious problem with exhibiting our weaknesses in this way is that we lessen our incentive to defeat the weaknesses. We may prefer the increased public attention over the silent internal battle.

Here’s what I learned some time ago, from my own weaknesses and mistakes. I learned that there’s a higher reward to be had, and more to be proud of, when we overcome the challenges in our lives. Instead of carrying our troubles around, like large stones that are hard to hide, we can chisel away at them until they become awesome monuments. Sure, they will still be markers in our path, but now they will represent a triumph. They will be long-lasting evidence of our strength and perseverance.

But it does take a lot of work and effort to defeat our weaknesses, and that’s why we often choose to stop trying.

When we think of our flaws, and especially our past mistakes, it’s easy to feel defeated and powerless because those are things we can’t erase. We often feel shame that further cripples us. But when we choose to struggle and put in the work and put forth the effort to persevere, we can leave those burdens in the past. Then, we can really be proud of what we’ve achieved. Instead of trying to hide them, we can carry around those experiences like a badge.