4. Put on some blinders and stop looking.

Some days, I cannot stop looking at myself. I find myself obsessively searching for my imperfections in the mirror, in reflective storefront windows, in the selfie option of my phone—EVERYWHERE. For several months, I kid you not, I had no mirrors in my space. I threw on whatever was feeling good, hoped my eye make-up was even on both sides, and re-oriented my gaze away from any reflection of myself. This is extreme, but what it taught me was that letting go of checking how I looked was incredibly freeing.

In horse races, the horses have blinders put on them so they can only see straight ahead and they can’t see the other horses. Sometimes, I practice putting on my metaphorical blinders: I cover my mirror for the day, and make a conscious effort to look outward. Think about how much energy we expend looking at ourselves—what if we re-directed all that energy towards watching sunsets, or listening to each other, or watching the play of sunlight through leaves in a tree? There is so much beauty around us when we start looking, so why spend so much time self-assessing, when we could be experiencing the marvels all around us?

Try looking outward, instead of downward, and remember to see the beauty all around you.

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