We've all been in situations where we feel extremely judged. You can hear it their response, and see it in their eye roll. Best of all, you may even hear or read about them talking about you and your life.
Feeling as though someone has judged me is not fun, and it always leaves me wishing I had never shared anything about myself to someone new or to anyone at all for the matter. It makes want to hide, and do everything by myself. Sharing stories or elements of one's life is just a part of getting to know someone and letting someone get to know you. Don't feel ashamed of letting people in and being burned by it, you're human. My best advice is to learn from your mistake and share much less.
So how do you avoid being judged?
Ha, you can't. Unless you're one of those people who doesn't talk to anyone, has no interest in meeting new people or maintaining current friendships, chances are you do talk about yourself and you do relinquish the "good" and the "bad" experiences that you've encountered. Unfortunately, the more someone knows about you, the more they think they actually know you. I am a firm believer in the idea that absolutely no one knows you better than you know yourself. Therefore, I'd like to tell those who judge me, that your opinion about me is simply an opinion. Don't forget that.
The fact of the matter is that your experiences are yours, tell those who judge you that. They're unique to you. Sure someone may be able to say, "Oh yeah that's happened to me too" then they'll add, "but look at me I'm fine, I'm still happy", but every person is different. The same one experience will affect each person in a completely different way. So the next time you compare your experience to someone else's just remember that it does not mean it struck you the same way struck them.
Secondly, nine times out of ten, when someone judges you for what you've done or for what has happened to you it is because they have not had it happen to them. Funny how that works right? Ask them, how can you say what you would have done in my situation when you've never actually had to deal with the experience? Watch them squirm.
Although I don't recommend sharing your business with others who are new to you, if you do choose to, just remember that new people often will not have sympathy for you because there may be no common experiences between you and them. Consider yourself lucky if they even have to ability to empathize with you because very little people have that ability anymore.
Live your life. It's perfectly normal to have a less than perfect life. Ignore those who have irrelevant opinions about you. If they aren't there to support you like you support them, move on. You don't need them at all.
"You never look good trying to make someone else look bad." - Unknown
