When did the word "emotional" become such an insult?
Instead of complimenting someone's ability to feel, it seems like it's more of a not-so-subtle hint that a woman is on her period. It's become a gender thing. That's weird, right? I mean so far, the definitions of emotional I have found are: "Of or relating to a person's emotions," "Having feelings that are easily excited and openly displayed," and "Pertaining to or involving emotion or the emotions."
So... it doesn't say anything about being a woman or anything about being an annoying human. Interesting.
Perhaps some think that emotions are inherently bad (so odd), or others simply don't like seeing them out in the open (ninnies), but either way... it's time to stop. Emotions are great -- even the super uncomfortable ones. They make us who we are and allow us to experience life deeply and thoroughly. And, women aren't the only ones who experience them. Men do, too.
We should feel lucky to have the capability to experience such intoxicating feelings, so why would we ever feel the need to ignore them or feel shame about them? Instead, let's celebrate our ability to feel and the strengths this quality brings us. Here are five reasons it's great to be emotional.
1. We Aren't Afraid of Crying
While many may see crying as a form of weakness, crying is a display of authentic human emotion and an incredibly powerful form of communication. Crying suggests intimate connection, empathy, concentration and that we're present in the moment. (So rare these days, eh?)
But, most importantly, crying physically releases emotions from the body. We know better than to hold in consuming emotions -- positive or negative, big or small. So we cry. We let it out, experience the feeling and move on with our lives. We release it out into the open so we don't have to carry it around any longer. Why would you want to hold on to sadness instead of releasing it?
2. We Make Fabulous Friends
You know that warm and fuzzy feeling you get when you meet someone for the first time who is really sweet? They give you a hug, they compliment something you were worried about wearing and they ask you about things you actually want to talk about. They're your saving grace at those awkward cocktail parties. In fact, you LOVE those people!
Well, those people are emotional people. Yep. They have just tapped into your emotional side and formed a connection based off feelings. And you ate it right up with a dang spoon.
It shouldn't be surprising, though. People who celebrate the capacity to feel typically make really fabulous friends. We listen to others, we support each other and we absolutely try our hardest to empathize with whatever our friends have going on. We use our emotional side to tap into how they might be feeling and help them get to a place where they feel much, much better. Which is basically the definition of friendship. That, and like, binging on Orange is the New Black on Netflix for a full weekend.
Oh, admit it. You do.
3. We're Better at Problem-Solving
Conflict is the bane of our existence. We're the ones who are finding common ground, bringing people together and solving the issue at hand. We use our emotional skills and our natural inclination to relate to others to bring harmony back into our environments. And then, we can stop ripping our nails off, or whatever other bad anxious habit we've developed in our lifetime to deal with argumentative humans. Yes... this is why we have short nails.
In conclusion maybe we aren't the best at confrontation, but you can bet your butt we'll get it solved.
4. We Decide on Happiness
People who feel deeply prefer to make decisions based off emotion. And the sky is blue. But, what people don't talk about, is that no matter how difficult the decision, we're usually pretty happy with the outcome. Sure, we can calculate facts and data into the decision-making process just like others, but the difference is, we ask ourselves the magic question: "What would bring happiness?"
Sure, that's not always the objective answer -- five of us might get five different answers. But how often in life is there really one right answer? And how often are we all happy with the same answer?! See!! We're totally onto something.
Just to clarify, we aren't having knee-jerk reactions or outbursts when making a decision, we are taking the time to think it through like a rational human being. A happy decision is a rational decision. We choose happiness, we choose harmony and we choose to live our lives confidently, knowing that our emotions steer us in the right direction.
5. We're Get Sh*t Done
Probably the most flawed thinking about emotional people is that we don't do well in the workplace. So. Not. True. Emotional, sensitive people are great at business-related tasks. Dare I say it, WOMEN are good at business. GASP.
Emotional understanding is actually incredibly beneficial in business. How? Well, business is all about people. You know, who needs what, how they need it, who they need it from, etc, etc. It's all about solving a problem that people have, and if you don't understand people or their emotional needs, then good luck!
Competition is abundant in every industry, so what makes a customer choose one model over the other? People. Customer service. The good stuff. If you don't have good customer service, you can kiss most profits goodbye. And who better to deal with the people, than those who tap into their feelings on a daily basis? Feelers can read people, empathize with people, pivot and adjust to fit needs and keep people happy. We're reaaaaaaaal good at that.
Not convinced? OK. Hmm. Let's go over some fabulous "emotional" women who are rather successful: Sheryl Sandberg (ENFJ**, COO baller), Oprah Winfrey (ENFJ, media baller), Beyoncé Knowles (ISFP, queen baller), Ellen DeGeneres (ENFP, favorite baller), Melinda Gates (INFJ, philanthropist baller) and JK Rowling (INFP, writing baller).
That's one nice lineup.
So, the next time anyone calls you emotional, give 'em a big "thanks!" and walk off knowing that one day, you might be their boss. Ha!
Want to be more confident about your emotional side?
We all do. Sometimes it may feel that the cards are stacked up against us because of our sensitive side, but there are so many positives that come with understanding and experiencing emotion. Remember this list, and make sure to support yourself with other emotionally sensitive women. Two hearts are better than one.
Make sure you come check out the original article on Blush! It's pretty much the mecca for emotionally awesome women like ourselves. We do lots of magical things like this and this.
**And, if you're interested in personality stuff, like the things I mentioned at the bottom, come check out 2bme! It seriously has all the info you would ever want...and more.
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