Hot Topics     Women's Health    

Stop being so damn hard on yourself



Advice from motivational speaker Peter Shankman

You deserve to be treated kindly by you


Yes, you. 


We all do it. I woke up at 3:45am this morning with the goal of a 90 minute ride on the Peloton before my daughter woke up. 60 minutes of ADHD in bed later, and my 90 minute ride shrunk to a 30 minute ride.

I hated myself for about four seconds, until I remembered that thirty minutes of heavy breathing and hard sweat is still better than zero minutes, and tomorrow is another chance to try again.


I bet right now, at this very moment, you're being hard on yourself for something you have or haven't done. Hear me when I say that being unkind to yourself doesn't help you improve. Rather, it wounds the warrior within you, and feeds the cycle of being unkind to yourself.

Stop it. Chances are, you'd never allow someone to treat a friend, a family member, heck, even a pet, the way you sometimes treat yourself.

You deserve to be treated kindly by you. That's it. That's the sentence.

Much love,

-Peter

Peter Shankman is an entrepreneur, an author and a trainer living in New York City. He is a stay at home dad as well. Check out his blog here.



Other articles by Peter Shankman


  • Four years ago today

    Meet your challenges and come out stronger

    March 12th, 2020 was a clear Thursday morning in NYC. I'd woken up super early, having been invited to the media launch of the new Peloton studios in NYC. Getting there and touring the facility with about 40 other reporters and media, we took the first ever class in the studio, taught by Robin Arzon. It started at 8am, and we were all sweating heavily and breathing all over each other. 45 minutes later it ended, and we walked out, high-fiving and taking selfies. read more »
  • "Perhaps it's my destiny to be fat..."

    Peter Shankman shares his epiphany

    I went to the doctor late last week for my physical. I had to stand on one of those demon scales, the ones that send electrical impulses up your body to measure your body fat. I'd rather put out a campfire with my face than have to stand on that scale, but there I was. read more »
  • Avoidance feeds anxiety

    Motivational speaker Peter Shankman gives us some advice

    Take some action today, and kill some anxiety. Trust me. You'll be glad you did. read more »
  • They're already looking...

    Embrace who you really are

    Only when you embrace who you really are, can the magic really happen. Remember: Weird is simply a side effect of awesome. Never, ever forget that. read more »
  • Go out and make some happiness today

    Happy Wednesday morning from NYC, where the sun is shining and the skies are blue! One quick thought for you today that might prove helpful. read more »
  • How to slow that Ferrari brain we've all got inside our heads

    So of course, 2am this morning found me and my race car brain unable to sleep, focusing on everything I had upcoming over the next five days. Since I was already up, I got on the bike, and while riding, dictated ten ways for you to slow down your brain and decrease your anxiety, so you don't find yourself on the Peloton at 2am tomorrow morning, too. Here we go. read more »
  • The value of your time = The value of your mental health

    What is your time worth to you?

    Your mental health and your time are closely related. If you're constantly running around complaining that you don't have enough time, that has a negative effect on every aspect of your life. If there's an easy way to fix that, I can't imagine anything in the world more worth the spending of a few extra dollars. read more »
  • I turn 50 tomorrow

    Here's my birthday wish for you

    (If we've been communicating for longer than a year, you've received this before. But that said, it's good to reread. It's good for all of us to reread every once in a while. (And I added a new one at #10.)) read more »
  • What to do When You're Having "One of those Weeks"...

    Just breathe and realize you can't control everything

    Ever have a truly horrible week, where within the first 12 hours, you know it's not going to get any better? Yeah. That's me this week. read more »
  • Lessons from the African Plains

    You don't know your own power until you use it

    We don't know how strong we are until we're called on to be that strong. We don't know our power until we stand up to a bully, until we stop caring what others think of us, until we demand better service, until we raise our prices, until we stop allowing ourselves to be taken advantage of. read more »