We all want attention.

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Even when we feel like hiding.

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That doesn't mean we want to be ignored.

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There is something in us that needs to be seen.

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There is nothing wrong with wanting to be seen.

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We create all kinds of work and art to be seen.

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The real challenge is how we respond when we are not seen.

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What do we do when the people we want to see us the most don't even look?

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It can be hard to feel invisible.

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We feel lousy when others misinterpret our words or actions.

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Yet those uncomfortable feelings give us a clue to where our inner work is.

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Do we feel inadequate because they don't see us?

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Do we feel less than?

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Does it stir up our insecurities?

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If it does, congratulations!

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Now we have some real gold to deal with.

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Why do we need others to see us to feel validated?

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What do we need from the world to feel that we are enough?

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The tricky part about the whole issue is that we will always be let down when we depend on others this way.

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For they have their own challenges to deal with.

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They are dealing with their own insecurities.

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The truly difficult par tot learning to see ourselves.

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To see how good we are and how we are more than enough, even when we don't feel it.

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For how can anyone else truly see us clearly if we do not see ourselves clearly?

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How can we expect others to see our innate value when we do not recognize it ourselves?

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This is where the act of self-care and self-compassion come in.

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When we are in the midst of those feelings of loneliness and despair is when we need to be kinder and gentler with ourselves.

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If we can stand on our own and say to ourselves that we matter when no one else seems to care, then we have reached the other side.

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Then we can begin to grow more fully into ourselves.

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And we can accept and access our gifts more fully.

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For when we see ourselves as the beings of infinite potential that we truly are, it does not matter if anyone else can see that or not.

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We can stand up and be tall even when we are all by ourselves.

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And then when someone does truly see us, we can take it in not from a place of need or feeling less than, but from a place of true humility.

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For when we see ourselves clearly, we can others clearly as well.

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Then we will know in our hearts that we are all much more then we appear to be.

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We are all greater and carry more possibilities inside of us than we can ever discover.

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So how can you see yourself more clearly?

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How can you let go of the need to be seen by others?

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~ Sam Liebowitz, The Conscious Consultant