What Do You Hear When Suggestions Are Given?

When someone offers a suggestion, how do you receive it? Do you hear it as something valuable — a chance to grow — or does it land as a personal attack? The way we feel in those moments often reveals the belief systems we’ve taken on over time.

If we can see suggestions as opportunities to improve, we’ve begun to learn the art of growth. Yet if we feel attacked, it’s worth asking: what about the suggestion makes it feel like an attack? Did it trigger a sense that we’ve done something wrong? And if so, where in the past did that belief come from?

Awareness is the first step. By noticing our feelings, we gain the power to choose how we respond. Of course, awareness doesn’t instantly erase old beliefs. But with consistent practice — questioning the thoughts that cause suffering — we can learn to be at peace. We can hold space for others to share their suggestions, beliefs, and values without feeling threatened.

Growth also means learning to speak up with kindness, while allowing others to voice their truth. This is how we come together in peace. Remember: you don’t have to beat yourself up if someone offers a suggestion. You are already worthy. Your perspective matters. You are allowed to have a voice just as the other does too.

Be gentle with yourself, and try asking:

•     Is this suggestion truly an attack, or simply another perspective?

•     Am I suffering because of the words spoken, or because of the meaning I’ve attached to them?

•     What belief from my past is being triggered here?

•     How might this suggestion actually support my growth if I chose to see it differently?

In the end, you choose how to respond — the choice is always yours. Do you choose peace in the present moment, or hold onto an unconscious belief that creates discomfort simply because it has not yet been questioned?

The choice is yours to question the thoughts that cause you discomfort.