We don’t all have to live as one big, happy family. In fact, I think it’s a common misconception that we need universal approval or to be well-liked by everyone. Worrying about whether or not other people like you can be an anxiety-ridden waste of time. It lowers your confidence and takes away your focus from growing as a person and helping others. You’re never going to be everyone’s favorite person, so why do so many of us keep trying to change what makes us, us?

Don’t abandon your happiness

Each of us has our own personality, interests, and things we dislike, and that’s good! Don’t hide what you love or what you hate so that you fit into someone else’s box — be proud of your heart and try to understand why other people are proud of theirs. If a person doesn’t like a certain quality about you, that doesn’t mean you’re required to change that quality.  Don’t spend time forcing a connection, because for every person that doesn’t value you, I’m sure 10 others do. Find those people.

If I tried to please every single person I met, I’d ultimately sacrifice my happiness for someone else – and they probably wouldn’t care very much if they knew I was trying to please them. It doesn’t matter how many people like you or what you’re doing if you don’t like yourself.

Surround yourself with the people who value you. Feel secure with yourself and commit to the never-ending adventure of growing into the best version of yourself. Of course, not everyone is going to like your best version, but they don’t need to. You need to.

Standing up and sticking out

Even those who are revered and generally admired aren’t beloved by everyone. But what would happen if these people — whether it was civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. or Sylvia Rivera or animal rights advocates like Diane Fossey — constantly worried about what other people thought of them and what they were doing? The world would be a different, less progressive, place.

Margaret Thatcher said, “If you just set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and would achieve nothing.” What you want out of life shouldn’t be determined by whether or not other people like you.

Don’t compromise on who you are. You can’t live your life hoping that everyone you meet will love you — it’s just never going to happen.

Your time is precious and you should spend as much of it as you can with people who appreciate you for you.