Boing-Fwip! How to NOT Own the Sh*t Others Throw at You.

“I am rubber, and you are glue. Your words bounce off of me and stick on you!”

Is this expression still a thing? Well, it was when I was a kid; and you know what? It worked!

It didn’t work because of the clever metaphor or the corny rhyme. It worked because it gave us a way to tell our brains that we aren’t going to listen to the hurtful things that our peers throw at us. And for those of us that utilized such expressions, we walked away feeling empowered and unscathed. On the other hand, there were those who weren’t well-versed in these self-affirming tactics. Unfortunately, they would often walk away wounded and defeated.

I think children are much better at using self-affirming expressions than adults. Largely, because self-affirmation is a form of talking to one’s self. You see, it’s not permissible for adults to do that, right? Children talk to themselves, dogs, imaginary friends, all day long and that’s perfectly fine. But, when we, adults, do it……..Uh uh! That’s crazy talk!

Well, I vehemently disagree! We are constantly in conversation with all the many parts that make up the human brain — the 8th wonder of the world (in my opinion). Just watch the Pixar movie, Inside Out. I know it is a children’s animated movie…