The "Doughnut Syndrome"

I often asked folks if they like doughnuts. They usually answer that they love doughnuts. I love doughnuts. I remind them that there is something very wrong with doughnuts. They have holes in the middle of them. Instead of enjoying the wonderful and tasty and doughnut, you could focus on the hole—or what is wrong with the doughnut. You could be extremely critical of doughnuts. By focusing on the hole, you deny yourself the pleasure of a tasteful doughnut. Too many of us have a strong critical voice that seems to lurk deep inside of our brain and seeps out through our words and expressions. Criticism may be helpful, especially when requested, but too often criticism is expressed when it was not requested. We can be too critical of ourselves as well as others. Such a critical attitude is what I call “the doughnut syndrome”.