Dear Ellen,

Wanting approval is a very normal thing – everyone craves for it and enjoys being appreciated, praised.

What you need to consider is balance.

Always going by others wishes or always going by your wishes are two extremes. Operate between the two when making decisions.

Regarding approval, frankly it’s yours that matters the most first – do you approve of yourself outside of what others say? Then the approval of the important people in your life whom you can count on – those are okay to have as long as you know they have your best interest in mind.

However, to sacrifice your individuality to please unknown people or this invisible concept of “society” is what you need to work on?

Why is their approval so important exactly? Will your life be over if they disapprove? Will you cease to be of value if they disapprove?

When writing a book for example, yes one does take the audience into account and any sensitive content depending on the country…that’s prudence at best. However, at the end of the day, for whom are you really writing the book for? Why are you writing the book? Do you actually have fun while writing it?

These are the questions you need to ask yourself.

Regards,
Nina