Jamie DragonDon't Judge A Book By Its Cover
Updated: May 17
I don’t know about you, but I have had many people make assumptions about what they think they know about me. It’s easy to judge a book by its cover. However, it’s not until you read the book from cover to cover that you gain a full understanding of the narrative. And if you want to be lazy, at least look at the pictures or watch the movie.
I’ve often wondered why people make assumptions. I gather it has something to do with a conglomeration of emotions, and I’m sure I could make an extensive list of reasons and examples, but this post is long enough.
Shortly after I opened my business, I had someone approach me with the most amazing night cream. Cue the eye roll! Business owners receive a staggering amount of solicitations, so, of course, I was skeptical. I had used several skincare products throughout my career as a cosmetologist and had fallen prey to so many products’ false claims. Upon opening my salon, I decided only to carry products I felt lived up to their testimonials. It’s always been important to me to sell a product I truly believe in rather than just making a sale. At the time of the eye roll, I wanted to bluntly say, “No, go away!” Instead, I listened to my inner guidance, which told me to try it.
Nine years later, I'm still using what I call my facelift in a bottle. I bet you'd never guess I was fifty! I'm kidding! In all seriousness, though, over the last nine years, I have seen this product transform both men's and women's skin as well as their confidence levels. It's truly remarkable. I know as well as anyone what minor external improvements can increase confidence levels. However, there is almost always an internal shift that needs to take place as well. Take acne, for example. Depending on where it shows up on your skin, it can relate to hormones, digestion, or emotional upsets like stress or anger. Whether it is healing mentally or physically, it’s worth doing some troubleshooting to get to the root cause. Although a quick fix might be nice, it’s essential to do a physical and emotional health check. A simple tool that I found eons ago is a book, actually two books, by Louise L. Hay. The first is You can heal your life, and the second is You can heal your body. You can heal your life discusses the importance of self-love and changing the way your mind thinks or perceives things. Louise talks about the effects our thoughts and words have in terms of manifesting physically in your body. You can heal your body serves as a reference for ailments one might experience and the thought process behind them. She takes it a step further by providing a new thought process for you.
You're probably wondering where I'm going with this as I started talking about judging books by their covers. Bear with me. We're covering a few topics today!
I’ve had people become annoyed by my referencing examples from this book because they do not believe that headaches could possibly be caused by invalidating oneself, self-criticism, or fear. Of course, headaches can be linked to dehydration and a slew of other problems. Nonetheless, if you’re a seemingly healthy person who drinks plenty of water, it might be ideal to suck up your pride and try it. Ah, yes, pride and ego get in the way of a lot! The only thing that could happen is that you have a more positive outlook and have a little more self-love. I’d consider that a win-win. Personally, that book is my first reference point anytime I have an ailment, and it’s almost always on point.
Unfortunately, there is no thought process to reduce wrinkles, so you better treat yourself with this amazing night cream! If you have questions, email me! The leading cause of CERTAIN wrinkles is laughter, so if you have this problem, you're doing pretty well! Keep laughing!
Again, I have a point. I had a client who was stressing they needed to make extra income. I said, “I don’t know if this is for you or not, but I could have a possible solution.” She was intrigued, so I presented her with information about the skincare company. She became excited about the opportunity and saw herself doing and enjoying the work. Later during the enrollment period, her critter-brain freaked out, and she began telling me her life wasn’t as easy as mine and she wouldn’t be as successful as I had been. I asked what she meant by that out of curiosity, and she proceeded to list my accomplishments and imply they had been easy or handed to me on a platter. Usually, I would’ve kept my mouth shut and let it go because I know this comes from a place of fear more than anything.
I’m sure you all have reached a point where you’re just done. I was at that point. I’m going to be vulnerable here by putting my response out to the world, but here we go. I kindly said, “I have overcome many forms of abuse. I was kidnapped, attempted to be kidnapped a second time, I was stalked by multiple people, among other things, and I have worked extremely hard for every success I have because my parents taught me the value of hard work. If you think my path to success was easy, you’re highly mistaken.” Things got quiet, I never saw that client again, and I was more than okay with that. I had reached my breaking point of people making assumptions or more-or-less excuses. I’ll be the first to say not every opportunity is for everyone. Every experience, though, is a lesson for our soul’s growth. I didn’t get to where I am by turning down opportunities when I needed help, but with every experience comes a lesson. At that moment, my lesson was to speak my mind, be direct and not allow my clients to make assumptions or excuses.
We can be quick to make decisions and assumptions based on fear, inferiority, and complacency while assuming we’ll never be capable of achieving the things we desire. Nothing is out of reach if you put effort into it. It’s a matter of how bad you want to remove yourself from your current circumstances. Don’t ever assume someone else’s path is effortless and make excuses for not achieving the things you desire. I took every opportunity that came my way, no matter how big or small. If at some point I decided it didn’t fit me or my life, I moved on. You’ll never know if something is for you or if you can succeed at it if you don’t try.
So before you make assumptions about someone, ask questions. And before you make assumptions about whether or not you will succeed at something, try it!
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