Believing that who we are is defined by what other people think of us cripples the joyful spontaneity of our authentic selves. If others disapprove, and their opinion defines us, then we modify ourselves or shrink from view. Our image of ourselves is located in them, and when they reject us, we no longer "are" at all...We cease to exist except as a reflection of what others think. The fact is that who you are has absolutely nothing to do with any thoughts or opinions that exist in anyone else in this world.
Dr. Wayne Dyer, The Shift