What is judgment? Judgment is the act of making yourself or others wrong and is only present when we judge ourselves. You see, outer experience is a reflection of your inner reality, so when you find yourself being judgemental, you are also allowing yourself to be judged. 

So - do you judge others or compare yourself to others? Here’s what I mean: I went to go pick up my kids from school the other day. I was wearing a workout outfit, a sports bra, and some yoga pants, which meant you could see the big tattoo on my side - which I love and means a lot to me. But some other moms were staring at me and  making comments about the tattoo. 

Fortunately now, with the amount of work I've done myself, and as a Leadership coach, that doesn’t phase me at all. I know they are just judging themselves and holding themselves back, which is why they feel the need to judge me. 

Judgment comes from a low vibration place and is the result of dark energy festering within you. That energy has to go somewhere, and so we project it on those around us.

When we do the work to heal and stop judging ourselves, then we can begin to stop judging others and allow them to be themselves. If you engage in self-judgment, you will be judgmental of others. When we let go and allow ourselves to be the divine free beings we are meant to be, we are also freed of the need to judge others. 

One of my favorite quotes is from Ram Dass, a spiritual teacher, and I'll butcher it but it's something like this:

When you go out into the woods, and you look at the trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is...the minute you get near humans, you lose all of that. And you are constantly saying ‘you are too this, or I’m too this.’ That judgment mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees. Which means appreciating them just the way they are.

When you stop judging yourself and others, the judgment you face from the outside world will become irrelevant. When you do the work to identify your divine path, you’ll be able to let rude comments roll off your back - but you have to start from within. To help you start the healing process, and to get you thinking about judgment, I’ll leave you with these questions: 

• What is the #1 judgment you have about yourself?
• Whatever that judgment is, can you love yourself anyway? 
• Can you forgive yourself for that thing you judge?

And remember -- You don’t *have* to forgive yourself, or release self-judgment - but it is your choice to continue to hold onto negativity. The more you become aware of your self-judgment, the higher your energetic vibration will be, and the more yourself you will be. And the more free you will be. <3