Ask Yourself: Am I being too Judgemental?

We have been living in a world where people have freedom to pursue anything they want and in some parts of the world can be anything they want to be, but still, we live in an age where people are drowning in depression and other social anxieties more than ever. The most technologically savvy generation is battling with the worst emotional crisis of all times. In spite of progressing so much and far reaches of education in the world, why are we struggling with emotional well-being?

Wherever you look around on the internet, you will find the comment section spewed with very critical remarks. We, as a generation, are quick to pass judgments and thanks to social media that provides a platform to raise one's opinion, no matter how severe it may be. Add to that the element of anonymity and you see a mob pouring detestation and ridicule in great magnitude. As human beings, we have a need to belong, and with an access to the world just a second away that can possibly make us a topic of joke or resentment, we live under the fear of people judging us constantly of our actions and terming us as weird or abnormal or worse, an outsider.

So, what is the most terrifying notion of the 21st Century? It is not World Hunger or Poverty neither it is the risky climate change, it is how people view me. How do I appear to people? Do I appeal them or bore them or worse yet repulse them? If young people, especially teens would tell you their worst problems, it is their difficulty to find a place that accepts them as they are. Our generation is focused on moulding themselves into stereotypes, just to belong and fit in. It is no surprise people using makeup to hide themselves to appear more acceptable instead of reveling in it as an art, the need to appear skinny in order to be beautiful, bullying the exceptional to seem cool and thoroughly faking themselves just to fit the mould. What drives this wagon of anxiety disorders? It is none other than us, being overtly judgemental and in possession of a powerful tool named social media. Gradually we have become so status conscious that we are ready to be anything others desire.

So what makes us so judgemental? Being judgemental means viewing the actions of others through evaluative lenses. These evaluative lenses are fundamentally based on our assumptions about the other person and our own personal beliefs. Being judgemental is a reasonable thing to do after all we are all rational beings. We analyse and then proceed or make decisions about other people or objects or situations. But incessantly voicing your opinions about others without complete knowledge makes you overly judgemental.

When you are overly judgemental, you lack what is one of the most crucial elements of humanity and that is empathy. Often people judge with prejudice and ignorance. The inability to put oneself in other people's shoes and the employment of excessive logic leads to being overly judgemental. A change of perspective can change all your opinions about somebody. Before judging somebody, just stop and think what is their story or what situations might've been to lead them to do this instead of jumping to conclusions.

Your logics and perspective related to an event might be correct but the way to resolve the issue is through empathizing and educating and not delivering your harsh opinions and shaming them. We live in one of the most ironical standpoints of our times where we fear constant judgement but never back away from being highly judgmental at the same moment. So next time, before delivering your analytical viewpoint, ask yourself – Am I being too judgemental?


Written by Sanya K. Aitwani
Complicated thinker with a creative streak and perceptive outlook.