Observation And Value Judgments

Some people say we need judgments to be able to live in this world. “How could I make decisions if I didn’t judge? Isn't that how we make decisions?” Let’s make a distinction between a value judgment and an observation.

In an observation we see, hear, feel what is happening around us. We then state what we see. When we’re judging something, we go one step further in the process of observation and add in a subjective evaluation. We label the event as either good, or bad. THAT, is the value judgment. You're not removing the decision making process, you're simply replacing "good and bad" with "I want, I don't want."

How does this apply to accepting yourself? Well, you do the same thing to yourself. You first make an observation about yourself, then decide if it’s a good or bad thing. When we judge something about ourselves as “bad”, it becomes impossible for you to accept be okay with that part of yourself. BUT, it is possible to accept be okay with and still know you WANT it. Make sense?

Judgment stands as an obstacle to self-love. When you form judgments about another person, for instance, “this person looks like a lazy person, or a failure, or has terrible clothes,” you create a message to your subconscious that the world is a place where you had better act in certain ways if you want to be accepted...that you are only going to accept yourself under certain conditions. This leads to an inner dialogue of self-criticism.

What if you were to drop your value judgments and simply saw “what is” then identified what you wanted and why? It could totally transform your experience. What are the ramifications of doing so? Perhaps you would find a well of love for yourself and others that you never knew existed. Perhaps you'd notice the less you judge yourself, the less you'll judge others. And maybe, just maybe, the experience of acceptance would give you the solid foundation to move forward in creating yourself and your life that you've always dreamed.