Why Is It Easier to Judge Others Than Yourself?

Most people don't think of themselves as judgmental.

Yet almost everyone can spot someone else's mistakes from a mile away.

We notice poor decisions.

We notice contradictions.

We notice hypocrisy.

What we don't always notice is when we're doing the exact same thing ourselves.

That's one of the stranger parts of human nature.

We're often much better at evaluating other people than evaluating ourselves.

Why We See Other People's Flaws So Easily

Part of the reason is perspective.

We observe other people from the outside.

We see their actions.

We see their choices.

We see the consequences of their decisions.

When it comes to ourselves, however, we see our intentions.

We know what we meant to do.

We know what we were trying to accomplish.

We know all the reasons behind our actions.

As a result, we're often more forgiving of ourselves than we are of others.

The Double Standard We All Have

Psychologists have long observed that people tend to explain their own mistakes differently than they explain the mistakes of others.

If we make a mistake, we blame circumstances.

If someone else makes the same mistake, we may blame their character.

It's an easy trap to fall into.

And it's one of the reasons self-awareness can be surprisingly difficult.

When Confidence Becomes Self-Righteousness

Most people appreciate confidence.

What they don't appreciate is someone acting as though they're above the rules they expect everyone else to follow.

That's where judgment turns into self-righteousness.

The problem isn't having principles.

The problem is demanding standards from everyone else while making exceptions for yourself.

People tend to notice that very quickly.

And once they do, it's difficult to unsee.

Why Contradictions Make Us Laugh

Some of the best humor comes from contradictions.

A person says one thing.

Their behavior says something completely different.

The gap between those two things creates comedy.

It's why hypocrisy has been a source of jokes, cartoons, and satire for centuries.

Sometimes the contradiction is so obvious that the joke practically writes itself.

A Shirt for People Who Notice Contradictions

If you've ever listened to someone explain how everyone else should live while completely ignoring their own behavior, you'll appreciate our Vegetarianism Lecture graphic tee.

Featuring the line:

"Please continue explaining vegetarianism... while wrapped in a petting zoo."

Inspired by those moments when someone's actions become more interesting than their lecture.

Because sometimes the loudest opinions come from the people least interested in applying them to themselves.

 

 

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