Sing along with me.

Sticks and stones will break my bones.

Come on, you know the rest.

But names will…

I can’t hear you.

Never hurt me.

Did you sing it?

Even more important, do you believe it?

Do you believe that names can never hurt you?

You can either consider this to be a childish rhyme to be ignored, or a life mantra.

However, if you decide to ignore it, you do so at your own peril. If you make the choice to let names hurt you, then you’ve drawn a large red emotional bullseye on your back. And unfortunately you will encounter people throughout your life that will use you for target practice because they’ll know they can provoke you by calling you names.

Building a thick skin to protect your emotions against name calling takes time and practice. It’s harder when you’re young because your life is so influenced by those closest to you, so you’re always working to fit in. However, as you get older and aren’t as dependent on others you can begin to train yourself against the name calling and taunts of others.

The sooner you realize that another person’s opinion of you doesn’t define you, the better off you’ll be. So the next time you find yourself in a situation where you’re being a called a name that aggravates you, or raises your defenses, sing sticks and stones quietly in your mind and watch your anger evaporate away.

P.S. Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it please share it with one person you love.