If you find yourself apologizing for things that aren't in your control, like someone else's feelings or for things that couldn't possibly be your fault, then chances are you are someone who concerns themselves too much with the feelings of others. Granted, this isn't a flaw in and of itself, but it becomes an issue when care so much about other people that you forget yourself. You bend over backwards to satisfy the people around you even if it's at your own expense. You tear yourself apart just to build others up.
When someone else is having a bad day, whether it's a bad grade on an exam or a fight with another friend, you are always the one to apologize, as though you are the blame for someone else's feelings, but in reality you had nothing to do with the situation. When you want to ask your professor a question, you apologize for taking up their time, even though their job is to be available to help students. No matter the situation, despite the fact that you aren't involved whatsoever, you always seem to take the fault.
People probably tell you all the time that there is no need for you to apologize, and they're probably right. But at the same time you might think to yourself, is there really anything wrong with apologizing? Is it so wrong to empathize with others and say sorry simply because you really do feel for them? It isn't. There isn't anything wrong with apologizing. In fact, apologizing is often times exactly the right thing to do. But the one thing you should never have to apologize for is you.
Maybe you apologize too much, but isn't that better than not apologizing at all? Isn't apologizing a way of showing how much you care about others' feelings? Why should you have to apologize for caring about other people, when that's just who you are? The answer is you shouldn't. So maybe you apologize all the time when you don't need to, but that's definitely a lot better than not saying sorry when you actually should be. You shouldn't have to feel guilty for being who you are.
There are a lot of things you should never have to apologize for - things that are out of your control, things that aren't even remotely your fault - but that you do anyway, and that's OK so long as you realize it isn't your fault and that other people's feelings are out of your control. The one thing you should never have to apologize for is being who you are. If you care deeply for others, even if your way of showing it is constantly saying sorry, then that is nothing to be ashamed of. It's just you.
