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You Must Have Thick Skin: 3 Reasons Why You Don't

Rhino-Like

By Mark SmithPublished 3 years ago 8 min read
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You Must Have Thick Skin: 3 Reasons Why You Don't
Photo by Marquise Kamanke on Unsplash

You must have thick skin, if not, this harsh and unforgiving world will tear you apart.

For me there was certain obstacles and hurdles that life threw my way at a young age and my teen years. I remember being very soft and had a hard time asserting myself or standing my ground when bullies often confronted me.

Fighting and arguments were not my style and to this day it still isn't.

I was blessed early to catch on quick that this world is not butterflies and rainbows. I went through a lot of mess as a kid, my mother was a single parent and didn't have the smoothest of circumstances but I never folded when the going got hard.

As you get older and start developing your own mind and set of standards, you will tolerate less BS from others and learn to take things in with a grain of salt.

For a lot of folks, it may be difficult to have thick skin when life all of sudden backs you in a corner and maybe its because you have not endured the trenches long enough or not all.

3 simple reasons why some people are not emotionally strong:

1. Some Were Born With a Silver Spoon

By Raul Angel on Unsplash

In some people's childhood and upbringing based off their circumstances, a child having both parents in the household, happily married and were in sync is considered a huge blessing.

Now I'm not trying to put down any child that has that blessing, this is just an example of when someone has both of their parents and both parents had it so good they're child is going to have it better.

I don't think I can stress enough how important it is for a kid to be raised by Mom & Dad.....but that can be for a whole different topic.

This can mean they had the advantage when it came to living in a nice expensive home, a positive environment, more opportunities that others didn't get to have, lots of connections, being bought costly materialistic possessions and having the chance and money to go get a degree at a University and kick-start they're success at a early age.

The point is kids that had a easier childhood and found way more success early in life are less likely to develop thick skin.

Unless if they're parents already developed it themselves.

When life didn't knock you down and spat on you, you are more likely to become complacent.

This creates the perception that some didn't have to work as hard compared to others with a more difficult and challenging upbringing.

I'm not saying nobody ever worked hard or didn't have some challenges, I'm saying some were just fed with a silver spoon in their mouth and the longer that continued the less hungry a person grows up to be.

So when life puts you in a difficult submission hold that's hard to break out of you'll most likely tap out because you didn't have parents or mentors that could toughen you up mentally to figure out a way to escape that hold.

And why is that?

Because they themselves were not emotionally strong and didn't equip thick skin.

And you're more likely to give up on something quick when it becomes hard.

2. Can't Handle Any Type of Criticism

By timJ on Unsplash

A person being very sensitive and "butt-hurt" to criticism is perhaps the main reason why someone does not have thick skin.

When you put yourself out there and your talents on display for everyone to see, you will get a mixed bag of reactions from people that watch or follow you.

People will have opinions from all different flavors, some will be vague, some will be harsh, some will be positive, some will also be neutral. In order to be someone important and of value, it's imperative to be emotionally strong and bold on your path to greatness.

Never take judgement and critiques so personally from others, as anything you do professionally you will make mistakes and you will stumble a couple of times and with that comes feedback.

Feedback is good, whether its positive or negative but most people are not able to handle the negative feedback which can stop them from getting better at their craft. Sometimes a person cannot decipher the difference between 'bashing' and 'constructive criticism.'

*NEWS FLASH EMPLOYEE*

Your boss is not trying to be be an 'a' hole to you (although that can be subjective) they are just showing you a different and better way to do your job while also giving you helpful advice and insightful criticism so you can perform your tasks to the best of your ability.

That's everywhere in fact, whether you are a boxer, a wrestler, an artist or an actor. There's always something you don't do right and things you do wrong. I'm the type that appreciates feedback depending on who its coming from if the person has more experience and a wealth of knowledge than me.

I don't like getting consistent positive praise, I actually worry when I do.

I like to know what I can do to better my skills and how I can go about doing something more different compared to how I was doing it before. Its because I believe there's always room to improve and I have a growth mindset.

The only instance I'll tell you that its okay to not take any sort of critiques or feedback is from a person who is not doing anything with their life and people who lack the experience and knowledge in which career occupation you are in.

Other than that, in order to be the best at something you do have to accept constructive criticism and take feedback well from others that were already in your shoes.

Look at it as a chance to learn a valuable lesson and not someone verbally attacking you.

Part of pursuing success comes with having thick rhino-skin.

3. Seventh Place Trophy

By Ariel on Unsplash

This may offend some people but if you have thick skin like me then you're feelings are safe from my words.

If you think your child should be proud or happy that he or she placed 7th in a competition or you think you can give them a box of G-force shoes for Christmas as a sign of congratulations then you need to take a hard look on why you lost so many important little league baseball games growing up.

Then have the audacity to make excuses for your child or for yourself on why you didn't win.

Knock it off!

The game wasn't rigged or someone payed off the coach, you simply lost to a better team. You were just beaten by 6 other competitors that were more talented and skillful than you.

Get over it and strive to be a 1st place winner the next go.

7th place is not exactly something to be throwing a pizza party over on, I don't know anyone personally that celebrates being a loser.

Maybe except losers.

The reason you are happy with being 7th place is because you don't have thick skin.

All the times you're football coach was telling you to work on your defense and plays, you gave him an attitude and instead performed on a subpar level.

All because you had the mindset of a loser and didn't wanna put in the work to be a winner.

I don't know about you but I was never okay with a 7th place trophy no matter how hard the competition was, if I didn't want to be 1st in something then why even compete at it.

When your coach is being tough on you at practice its because he wants you to be the best you can be and anything less than that is a slap in the face to yourself.

Last time I checked, a rhino would want to be the most dangerous and ferocious animal in the jungle. The top of the food chain. The wildest of the wild.

So compare yourself to a rhino in the land of the jungle, battling against other hungrier and possibly more serious threats such as a lion and a tiger.

You are the rhino that is trying to survive and mark your territory against the rest of the animals.

You need food, you need land, you won't just simply give up your chase or your scraps to another animal that is after what you are after

All the other animals would look at you as soft and an easy target.

This analogy is the same to everyday life, this world can be competitive and harsh and if you think not then a check up on your mental is necessary.

Someone with rhino skin needs to remind you that a 7th place trophy is not award top-shelf material. You don't win 1st place being soft and weak-minded.

The most richest and savviest entrepreneurs in the world of business all had this in common...

They were emotionally strong and possessed thick skin.

No one probably informed you of this hidden gem but this is a must have.

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About the Creator

Mark Smith

Youtuber, Podcaster, Blogger, Freelancer Writer & Putting the Lord 1st

Your attitude towards life is what's going to be life's attitude towards you.

Nature heals the soul.

I don't walk with the crowd, I walk solo dolo.

Be YOU.

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