In the past few days, the issue of self-analysis and self-worth has come up in a few forums. My take on it is simple. Everyone at some stage analyses a) what sort of person they are and b) what sort of person they want to be.
I'm happy with who I am. Always have been. And I reckon I'm on track to becoming the person I want to be. So it was great to see the issue raised by two very good bloggers, Colleen and Dan.
It was refreshing to see Colleen writing, "I'm pretty secure with myself." Terrific, Colleen, I'm with you. I think you have every reason to feel that way.
And Dan asked, "How would you rate your self-esteem on a scale of one to ten? Of course, you don't have to answer. Mine used to be low, until I recognised that I am who I am and that's what I am. I have my faults like everyone else, but I have honed my strengths into feeling better about the person known as Dan Mega."
That's it, Dan. That's it. That's the key to life. That's the key to fully enjoying life and all that is around you. It's called self-belief. It is such a great blessing that sometimes we don't fully recognise its true worth. Dan, you are an enlightened man - and you deserve to be.
The greatest power lies within us. And there is only one person who can unlock it. We can. Ourselves. No one else can do it for us. That's how we glean the greatest power that life can offer us. And that's how we harness it. Through our acceptance of ourselves.
So why do I spend so much time advising other bloggers about their writing, about their photography, about the layout of their sites? And why, six days a week, do I direct people to great posts on other blogs? Because I believe we all blog not just to have people visiting our sites, but to actually make contact with others.
And because I believe blogging is a vital validation of life. Do you agree with me?