Anyone who’s ever tried to get a group selfie with their girlfriends knows just how hard it is to get a photo where everyone is happy.
Why? Because the moment we look at a photo of ourselves, we’re hard-wired to scan for our so-called ‘faults’.
It doesn’t matter how many of your friends think you look beautiful, you’re convinced you look like an ogre.
That’s why one blogger is urging her followers to try to see themselves as others’ see them.
Louise Aubery posted two identical photos of herself in her bikini. One was captioned with how others would see her, while the second included all the ‘faults’ she saw in herself.
“Whenever I see a picture of me, the first things which catches my eyes are my FLAWS. I always see what is wrong,” she wrote.
But she notes that when she looks at a photo of other people, she focuses on something else entirely.
“I really do not look at people’s flaws first when I look at a picture of someone else. On the contrary, I tend to focus on their assets,” she wrote.
She then urged women to treat themselves as others would, focusing on their good points and showing themselves a little love.
“We really need to learn not to be so harsh on ourselves. It is not healthy. I am going to work on it, and I hope you will too.”
Speaking to Metro.co.uk, she explained further: “Self-criticism comes from several causes. The society we’ve evolved in overemphasises our physical appearances. The influence of role models, the use of photo editing; it puts a great pressure on our shoulders and nourishes the feeling of not being worthy enough.”
Well said.