Welcome to my website and my company, The Right Reflection. For years I have been fascinated by the idea of reflections. We never see ourselves directly – only through reflection. I remember looking at my best friend in the mirror in our high school bathroom as we were putting on too much makeup and thinking, “Wow, she looks different in the mirror than she does in real life.” It was still her, but it wasn’t. I felt sad for her that she would never see herself the way I did – only the way she looked in the mirror. It didn’t take me long to realize that I wasn’t seeing myself the way others saw me either. I could only see my reflection. When we walk by a store window on a sunny day and glance to check our profile, we may be pleased or disgruntled as if that reflection is reality.
Remember the old myth of Narcissus. Narcissus, a young man, looked into a clear pool of water and saw another young man. The young man who lived in the pool was beautiful and Narcissus fell in love with this young man not realizing it was his own reflection. Hence, the term – Narcissism – in love with ourselves. He eventually died pining away for the perfect love he could never possess. Falling in love with our reflection doesn’t happen to most of us. More often, we are dissatisfied with what we see.
It’s not only in water or mirrors that we discover our reflection. The word reflection can also mean the fixing of our thoughts on something, careful consideration, a mental reflection. So our reflection often is a combination of external messages (from mirrors, water, other people, the media, cultural messages) and our internalizing of these messages and assuming the resulting image is real. For many people, this reflection is often distorted,
Throughout my career, first in teaching high school English, and then working my way up the corporate ladder, I noticed that many people did not reach their potential, and often times the reason was that the internal picture they carried around with them told them they weren’t talented enough, smart enough, attractive enough, or likeable enough.
I became fascinated with the idea that if people could see themselves clearly and non-judgmentally, whole new worlds would open up for them. So, there you have it. I want to give others the tools to see themselves clearly, act boldly and live fully. In other words, help them have the “right reflection.” I look forward to writing more about this topic and others like it in blogs to come. I hope you’ll join me for the ride. Pam
Awesome “why” story Pam. I look forward to your post.
Thanks Terry. Excited to finally get launched.
What a great start to your company Pam! Looking forward to reading your future posts.