The reasons why you need to stop living to impress others are that such a change in behaviour will make you lead a more purposeful life, build genuine relationships, improve your self-esteem and achieve financial stability.
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Living to impress others is a common trap that many fall into. It can lead to stress, anxiety, and a sense of emptiness.
On the other hand, choosing intentional living can bring fulfilment, purpose, and peace.
There are serious disadvantages of living to impress people and this is why there are many benefits to be enjoyed when you stop trying to impress them.
In this post, we will explore both the negative consequences of living to impress others and what you will gain as soon as you stop trying to appear nice in the eyes of people.
At the very end, I will supply you with a brief list of action steps to take to stop trying to impress people.
Uncomfortable Truths About Living to Impress Others
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The reason it will do you a lot of good to stop living to impress others is that the satisfaction you think you’re getting from your fake life is also fake.
One moment you feel like you’re on top of the world and the next, you realize you’re nothing but a suffering pretender.
In fact, in the privacy of your inner room, you often hate yourself for hurting your finances, your emotions and sometimes your loved ones by pushing so hard to appear to be what you’re not.
Find below some uncomfortable truths you feel inside you each time you’re alone after another session of overstretching yourself just to impress others.
- You really don’t need to impress others in order to be happy.
- Forcing to impress others hurts your finances badly.
- You won’t impress anyone anyway. Most people you’re trying to impress are too preoccupied with their own personal issues to notice your clownish fake life.
- Living a life of pretence keeps draining your energy unnecessarily.
- You may attract more haters.
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- Others might take advantage of you.
- Forcing to impress others takes you away from your true life purpose.
- It complicates your life. Just imagine yourself walking around in another person’s shoe which doesn’t fit you.
- You may experience embarrassment when someone, difficult times or a misstep on your part exposes you.
- You want to be authentic for once but can’t do so making you experience self-pity all the time.
- It makes you less productive because you hardly get enough time for the real you.
- The habit of impressing others quickly becomes an expensive addiction.
It is better to impress yourself.
As you can see, there are many reasons why you need to stop trying to impress others.
The benefits you will enjoy from working to impress your own self will ultimately make you a better person.
So what happens when we stop trying to impress others? There are many positive things that begin to happen to us when we choose to live a life of authenticity and intentionality anchored on our core values.
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Benefits of Leading an Authentic Life
Here are the reasons why you must stop trying to impress others. You can call them the advantages of being true to yourself and leading an authentic life.
1. Authenticity Breeds Genuine Connections
The inevitable outcome of any effort aimed at impressing others is fragile relationships built on a foundation of falsehood.
Instead of pretending to be someone you’re not, you can build deep and meaningful relationships by being your authentic self.
Remember that true friends appreciate you for who you are, not for the facade you put up.
2. Freedom from the Comparison Burden
Among the reasons why it pays to stop living just to impress others is that it frees you from the burden of constantly going out of your way to keep up with the Joneses.
When you stop trying to keep up with others, it allows you to focus on your own pace, your true values and aspirations.
3. Reduced Stress and Anxiety
The pressure to meet others’ expectations can lead to stress and anxiety.
The moment you learn to prioritize your values, you can reduce these negative emotions. Then you will begin to lead a more peaceful life.
4. You Will Rediscover Your True Passions
Maybe your need to impress people within your circle is a recent development. It was probably brought about by certain life circumstances such as a job loss.
This made you feel so inadequate that you chose to find solace in a life of pretence just to appear just fine.
I believe that instead of pursuing interests solely for the approval of others, you can explore what genuinely excites you.
This might lead you to discover hidden talents, profitable business ideas, new relationships or new hobbies.
5. Enhanced Self-Esteem
Achieving solid self-esteem is one more reason to stop living a pretentious life just to make people applaud you.
Self-esteem that is built on your own values and accomplishments is better than the one that must always depend on external validation.
This is what you need for a healthier self-image and greater self-confidence.
6. Living in Alignment with Your Values
You can only build your life on your most cherished values if you stop trying to impress others.
For example, if you value sustainability but live a lifestyle that prioritizes material possessions, it’s time to align your actions with your values by making eco-friendly choices.
7. Live On Your Own Terms
A truly satisfying life is not forced upon you by other people’s expectations and opinions.
When you stop chasing societal benchmarks you will set personal goals that align with your passions.
For instance, if you love writing, you can aim to complete a novel, even if it’s not a bestseller.
8. Increased Mental Clarity
When you’re not constantly trying to meet others’ expectations, your mind becomes clearer.
The clarity will allow you to make better decisions and find your purpose.
9. Greater Financial Stability
Overspending your income to impress others will bring you nothing but financial ruin.
On the other hand, when you stop buying things for the sole purpose of impressing others you will begin to focus on saving and investing as a means to achieving financial stability in your life.
This means saving, investing in the stock market, buying assets or starting a small business.
Such deliberate actions towards achieving true financial freedom are only possible for those who are not in the habit of trying to win external approval.
10. Time for Meaningful Pursuits
Now that you don’t care much about what other people think of you, you can use the time and energy saved from impressing others to engage in charitable work.
It becomes easier to make a lasting impact by forming habits that contribute positively to society.
11. A Chance to Benefit from a Minimalist Lifestyle
One of the benefits of not trying to impress others is that it will help you simplify your life.
Quickly, you will realize that, after all, you don’t need much to be a truly happy individual.
This is an opportunity to simplify your life by decluttering and owning only what truly adds value.
Minimalism allows you to concentrate on the things that matter most.
12. Leaving a Legacy of Authenticity
People who are not living for the sake of getting approval from the public have chosen to live intentionally.
An authentic life led by design rather than by default will set an inspiring example for others.
Your legacy becomes one of being true to yourself and encouraging others to do the same.
You can stop trying to impress people.
Despite the obvious feeling of fulfilment and personal growth that can be obtained from living on one’s own terms, many people find it difficult to stop seeking satisfaction from impressing others.
One reason for this is that they are so addicted to this fake lifestyle that they don’t know how to get out of it.
Are you in this category? Well, know that you’ve got what it takes to start living in a way that reflects your true self.
How to Stop Living to Impress Others
There is a lot anyone can do to stop trying to impress people. If you find yourself living a fake life just to court external validation try the below ideas to help you to stop forcing yourself to impress others unnecessarily.
Know that you’re fooling nobody but yourself
Look yourself in the mirror and say to yourself that you are better than this. You don’t want anybody to make a fool out of you so why do it to yourself?
Others have worse problems
One reason you may be trying to impress those around you is that you think they have a better life than yours. So you fake yours to appear to be on par with them.
Well, sorry to disappoint you. In most cases, when you look closer and deeper into the lives of those you’re comparing yourself to, you will discover a shocking truth: yours is much better than theirs.
Accepting this truth of life can stop you from living to impress others.
Commit to intentional living
A life based on intention will make you take control of your destiny. Learn to rediscover your true values and goals.
Then commit to spending time living in alignment with them.
Forgive yourself for past mistakes
Sometimes we fake our lives in an attempt to compensate for some terrible personal failure in the past.
If this is a problem for you make the effort to forgive yourself for any past mistakes you made.
Take the lessons and let go of the baggage. This will allow you to start a new authentic life that you will be proud of.
Rediscover your true passions
Have life’s circumstances made you lose interest in the things that make you truly come alive? This is the time to get back to your natural gifts.
Remember that the best route to a truly satisfying life is to embrace the things that you can do effortlessly.
Seek professional help
In extreme cases, the best solution might be to seek external help.
There are life coaches both online and offline who can help you deal with your self-esteem deficiencies, for example.
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Final Thoughts
Living to impress others does more harm than good. It’s a path that can lead to dissatisfaction and a loss of one’s true self.
This is why I believe you’ve made the right choice by looking for ways to stop trying to impress other people.
A good starting point is to embrace intentional living by aligning your actions with your values and passions.
The rewards include genuine relationships, reduced stress, self-discovery, and the chance to leave a legacy that empowers others to do the same.
I am right on this journey. It is not as easy as it sounds given the daily pressures we all face. But I’m not giving up. Join me so we can do this together.
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