Eva Smitte
Bio
Writer, model, mental health advocate. Instagram @eva_smitte
Stories (38/0)
Hello inner critic.
The other day I witnessed something in myself , something that went unnoticed countless times before. A process that is as damaging as it is elusive. But since I learned about its existence, my radar was up. And as I caught this phenomenon in action - I was able to stop it in its tracks, not allowing it to gain any substantial air time and preventing the damage from being done. Ladies and gentlemen, please meet the inner critic - part of our psyche that is always up for not so constructive criticism. Unfortunately, it usually appears when we need it the least - namely when we feel somehow weakened already, and could do with some support and compassion instead. This aspect of ourselves is the inner voice that will say something like "what were you thinking?” , "it’s your own fault", "you’re so useless “ and so on and so forth. While it’s certainly counterproductive that it would get activated while we are in some sort of a crisis , it also makes perfect sense given the fact that most of us grew up being punished for multiple "errors" on our part. Self - punishment then becomes a program that we switch on when things don’t go as planned.
By Eva Smitte4 years ago in Motivation
- Top Story - April 2019
3 Small Things that Make a Big DifferenceTop Story - April 2019
If someone asked me my beauty secrets, which is something people often want to know–I honestly wouldn’t know what to say. Not because I am not looking after my physical body, but because beauty to me goes so much deeper than that, and I doubt it can be enhanced via so called “secrets;” not in any meaningful way anyway. While I am fully aware that this opinion of mine is unpopular–I wholeheartedly believe that true beauty comes from within, and is the result of inner harmony and balance. Yes, of course there are physical/aesthetic attributes to it that indeed can be improved, or even changed dramatically, but to me if something is artificial–it is not beautiful. Everything is energy, and we cannot fake it, not with makeup, not with filters, not with the latest Kardashian trick of the trade.
By Eva Smitte5 years ago in Longevity
People Don’t Change
There is one sentence that both amuses and confuses me every time I hear it. The amusement part is because I know very well that it is simply not true, and the confusion because it is believed by too many to be dismissed as harmless. You've probably heard it numerous times too: "People don't change." Hmmmm, says who? Sometimes I do wonder who comes up with those cliche statements that go on living for decades in people's heads. But it doesn't matter. What matters is that we blindly accept them as the truth that is influencing our lives for years to come. Isn't it ironic that the main reasons of our existence—growth, learning, transformation, evolution—are pretty much contradicted in one short sentence? Boom! Just like that, seven billion people are given a diagnosis. And the greatest excuse of all time. To stay small and powerless over their own nature. Because inability to change equals losing in this game of life. Not in the eyes of ego who has all kinds of goals that feel good short-term, I'm talking about the bigger picture here.
By Eva Smitte5 years ago in Humans
- Top Story - January 2019
It’s Never Too Late to Live a Life of Your DreamsTop Story - January 2019
“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start over again.”Scott Fitzgerald
By Eva Smitte5 years ago in Motivation
- Top Story - December 2018
New Year Resolutions or Long Term SolutionsTop Story - December 2018
So it’s that time of the year again. You know the drill—suddenly everyone is feeling inspired to change their life for the better by changing their habits and routines for healthier alternatives. Whether it’s starting to exercise on a regular basis, quitting smoking, going vegan—there isn’t any other time in the year when people are as willing to launch the new version of themselves into existence. Which is great, it really is. The timing also makes perfect sense, the end of one cycle and the beginning of another is the most pronounced just before New Year starts. With so many people focusing on the same thing, the gateway is indeed powerful and the energies support the magic of new beginnings. Even the fact that different calendars and certain countries celebrate New Year at different times doesn’t reduce its impact as most of the world still associates the first of January with a fresh start.
By Eva Smitte5 years ago in Motivation
Fear of Greatness
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."-Marianne Williamson
By Eva Smitte5 years ago in Motivation
A Different Kind of Love Letter
I still remember the very first time I saw you. It was only a glimpse, a small part of who you are and yet it was magnificent. I was still a child, seriously perplexed by the complexity of the puzzle in front of me. Yes, you were always a bit of a challenge but very rewarding one. I spent countless hours on that one image of you and the satisfaction I felt once the pieces were all intact—it was enormous. Tower Bridge London in all its beauty stayed in my mind forever since. Yes, the puzzle wasn’t a metaphor I used—I believe it’s called jigsaw in this country. They come in many different levels of complexity and the one of you was a very complicated one for me at the time. Yet it was worth it. What is a perfect metaphor though is the fact that we always had to work on it, however it never felt like work to me. If I only saw a picture of you in the magazine, chances are I would forget all about you the next day. It’s only after playing with hundreds of pieces of your image in a very focused way, did I learn to appreciate you long before I met you.
By Eva Smitte6 years ago in Wander
Will Beauty Save the World?
I spent the last decade working in the fashion industry as a model. And yet, I struggle to answer what exactly is beauty. Mainly because to me it is less and less about the physical as the time goes by. Yet as I try to explain this, not many will listen. Hardly surprising, since we are bombarded daily with the images of what is considered beautiful. Big eyes, full lips, smal nose, pronounced cheekbones, slim waist, long legs - the list goes on. Barbie doll comes to mind- beautiful, but not real.
By Eva Smitte6 years ago in Viva
Pain as a Fuel for the Evolution
“There is no coming to consciousness without pain. People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own soul. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.” — Carl G. Jung
By Eva Smitte6 years ago in Motivation
Reasons to Grow
It suddenly occurred to me that terms like self-development, self-growth, inner work and so on - can be misunderstood by many as if they imply lack of self-love and contradict my whole emphasis on it. No, no - wanting to grow has nothing to do with you being less than or you not loving yourself. The opposite is true - once you get a taste of evolving, it will become obvious that there's nothing that screams self-love louder. Let me explain. There are two very distinct ways to look at changing yourself. First one - the one that comes to mind when we don't love and don’t value ourselves, goes something like this: "Something is wrong with me, I need to change that or nobody will love me, I don't feel I'm good enough so I need to do something about it." To be honest - a lot of us feel this way without ever admitting it to ourselves. But it is not the truth and hence nothing can be done about it except learning to love ourselves. Many might strive to improve their outer appearance or become more successful or to be liked by more people - whatever it takes to prove to themselves they are worthy. But the external validation never lasts, it is not about others - hence the term “self-love.” I wrote a post about self-love in more depth. In this current one, I want to discuss what happens when you succeed in it to some degree. First thing that comes to mind - you start to see beauty in the imperfection. Even if things appear messy - it is always up to us how to look at them and perceive ourselves and our life. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The beauty of life and you living it goes way deeper than we have ever been told. Why? Because it is your personal journey of exploration and learning - mainly learning about yourself. It is widely accepted that what makes life worth living is what you have on the outside - good job, family, friends etc. Those things are important and are a big part of our human experience. But this is not why we are here. We are here to evolve. Spiritually. To grow and learn and transform our consciousness into higher levels. If this sounds too new agey, in other words - we are here to become the best version of ourselves.
By Eva Smitte6 years ago in Motivation
Self-Love
This is by far one of my favourite subjects and yet I am still learning about it everyday. Despite being of an utter importance – it is a subject that is often overlooked and even more often misunderstood in our society. Self-love. I was familiar with the concept for years, yet it remained just that – a mental concept in my head with no idea on how to apply it in real life. And for some reason finding it out was not high on my priority list. Most likely because nobody told me just how important it is. It was a somehow mysterious thing, one that sounded vain and liberating at the same time and one that some people seemed to just magically have. It was almost like you had to be born with it in order to grasp it. Little did I know at the time – we were all born with it, it is our very essence and birthright. The problem is what happens after we are born – namely being shown and told we are not good enough. By our parents, by our teachers, by other kids and eventually by ourselves as we start to believe it. It has to be said that more often than not the message is not delivered on purpose and most of the time not in a direct manner either. It is more the case of us arriving to that conclusion just by living and observing the world around us. Every time we are told that we need to have good grades in school in order to be rewarded, every time we are compared to other children, every time we are punished for misbehaving – we learn that love comes with some conditions attached. And every time we fail to meet those conditions, we end up feeling not worthy of that love. The examples mentioned above are quite common and hence are something the majority of people can relate to. Then, there are those of us whose stories were far more traumatic and abusive and the consequences more pronounced, but the bottom line is that almost no one reaches adulthood without having had at least one experience that made them feel not good enough.
By Eva Smitte6 years ago in Motivation