Beauty Is a State of Mind

I recently started listening to a Korean band called The Rose. Their music carries a kind of raw honesty that feels both comforting and challenging at the same time. One of their songs, You’re Beautiful, has a line that has been living in my head ever since I first heard it: beauty is just a state of mind.

At first, I brushed it off as something simple. It sounded like the kind of line you might skim over in a book or hear in a movie and forget later. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised how deeply true it was. The idea that beauty is a state of mind challenges almost everything we have been taught about what it means to be beautiful.

From the time we are children, we are shown images and standards that tell us beauty looks a certain way. We are told it is the shape of a body, the tone of a voice, the style of hair, the smoothness of skin. We are told that beauty is something measured and judged from the outside. And because of that, many of us spend our lives chasing after it as though it is something separate from us. We think we will finally be beautiful if we can just fix enough of ourselves, buy the right products, or match what the world is showing us.

But the truth is that no matter how much you try to match a standard, if your mind cannot see yourself as beautiful, you will never feel it. You can spend hours dressing up, styling your hair, applying products, or sculpting yourself into an image, and still look in the mirror and feel empty. That is because beauty has never truly been about appearance. It has always been about the state of your mind when you look at yourself.

Think about it. There are days when you look in the mirror and you pick apart every single flaw you believe you have. Your skin is not clear enough, your hair will not sit right, your body does not match what you want. And even if others tell you that you look good, you cannot receive it, because in your mind, you do not believe it. Now compare that to the days when you feel alive, confident, and grateful. On those days, nothing much has changed about your appearance. Your body is the same, your face is the same, but your energy is different. You smile more easily. You carry yourself with more confidence. People around you respond differently. And that is because the beauty you feel inside radiates outward.

That is what The Rose meant when they sang that beauty is a state of mind. It begins with how you choose to see yourself.

Some of the most beautiful moments in my own life had nothing to do with looking polished or perfect. I remember laughing so hard with friends that tears streamed down my face. I remember finishing something I thought was impossible and feeling the quiet pride of knowing I had done it. I remember being vulnerable, showing my flaws to someone I trusted, and realising I was still accepted and loved. In those moments, I was not thinking about how I looked. But if someone had taken a picture of me then, I am sure they would have seen beauty. Not because I had styled myself to look a certain way, but because the light of self-acceptance was shining through.

We often forget that beauty is not just seen with the eyes. It is felt in the energy someone carries. When a person walks into a room with self-assurance and peace, you notice them. When someone smiles with genuine joy, it lights up everyone around them. When someone is kind, empathetic, and open-hearted, their presence leaves an impression that is far stronger than any physical feature.

This is not to say that caring for your appearance is wrong. There is nothing wrong with wanting to dress well, to take care of your body, or to enjoy expressing yourself through style. But these things should be an extension of the beauty you already believe in, not a desperate attempt to fill a void. If you do not see yourself as worthy inside, no amount of decoration outside will convince you otherwise.

The line from The Rose reminded me that we spend too much of our lives waiting for someone else to call us beautiful before we believe it. We wait for compliments, for validation, for approval, hoping that the right words from the right person will unlock something in us. But even when the words come, they fade quickly. The truth that lasts is the one you tell yourself.

If beauty is a state of mind, then it means you can choose it daily. You can choose to speak kindly to yourself instead of tearing yourself down. You can choose to see your body as strong, capable, and worthy of care. You can choose to value the things that make you unique instead of wishing you looked like someone else. You can choose to stop comparing yourself to people who are not living your life and who do not carry your burdens. You can choose to see yourself through the eyes of love, not through the lens of criticism.

Choosing beauty as a state of mind does not mean you will never have insecure days. We all do. It simply means you recognise that those insecurities do not define you. You can feel them, acknowledge them, and still remind yourself that you are more than enough.

The truth is that beauty has never been something the world was supposed to give us. It has always been something we are meant to discover within ourselves. When you see yourself as worthy and valuable, that truth radiates outward. People can feel it when they are around you. They might not even be able to explain it, but they will know there is something about you that draws them in. That something is not a hairstyle or a shade of lipstick. It is the quiet confidence of someone who has made peace with themselves.

The line from The Rose will stay with me, because it reminds me to shift my focus. Beauty is not about chasing approval. It is about cultivating a mindset of self-acceptance and gratitude. It is about realising that the things that make me different are the very things that make me beautiful.

So the next time you find yourself doubting how you look, remember this: beauty is not waiting for you in the mirror. Beauty is waiting for you in the way you choose to see yourself. It is waiting in your laughter, in your confidence, in your kindness, and in the peace that comes from knowing that you are enough.

Beauty is not a standard to be met. It is a state of mind to be embraced. And once you believe it, no one can take it away from you.

—HumanityECW 

Stop Waiting for Permission

 Live Your Life

How many times have you held yourself back because you thought you needed someone else to give you permission? Maybe it was your family, your friends, your boss, or even society itself. Maybe you waited for a nod, a sign, or a green light that somehow never came. It feels safe to wait. To hope someone else will say yes so you can finally feel ready. You tell yourself it is about being careful or responsible. But deep down, it is fear wearing a disguise. Fear of failure. Fear of judgment. Fear of stepping into the unknown.

But here is the truth no one tells you often enough: nobody is coming to give you permission to live your life. Nobody is waiting to hand you a map or open a door. Life does not wait for you to be ready. Time does not stop ticking until you get your courage in order. Every moment you hesitate, every day you spend waiting for others to approve your plans, you are stealing time from your own future. You are robbing yourself of the chance to grow, to learn, to fail, to succeed, and to feel alive. Your dreams are not paused until you say yes. They keep moving forward whether you do or not.

Think about all the opportunities you have let slip away because you wanted permission. The business idea you buried under what-ifs. The relationship you stayed in because you feared judgment. The change you avoided because you worried you were not ready. Those moments are lost forever. You cannot get them back. And the only thing that stood in your way was waiting. Waiting for approval that never came. Waiting for the perfect moment that never existed. Waiting for permission that was never going to be given.

It is time to stop shrinking yourself to fit inside other people’s comfort zones. Stop quieting your voice because you fear upsetting those around you. Your life belongs to you and only you. No one else has the right to decide how big your dreams should be or when you should start chasing them. You already have everything you need to begin. Not tomorrow. Not next month. Today. The courage, the strength, and the ability are inside you right now. What you lack is permission, and that permission must come from you.

Owning your life means accepting that you will stumble. You will make mistakes. You will fall short sometimes. But it also means giving yourself the freedom to try, to take risks, and to grow beyond what you thought was possible. Fear will always be there. Doubt will always creep in. But the choice to move forward despite those feelings is yours and yours alone. Waiting for permission only gives fear more power over you. Taking action takes that power away.

So ask yourself: what are you waiting for? What voices have you let silence your own? What dreams have you put on hold because you thought someone else needed to say yes first?

The answer is simple:

No one else will give you permission. No one else will decide for you. You are the only one who can say yes to your own life.

Start today. Take that first step even if it is small or uncertain. Own your choices. Own your path. Own your story. Fight for the life you want with everything you have. Because if you do not, someone else will decide it for you. And it will not be the life you dreamed of.

Your Indecisiveness Should Not Be an Inconvenience to Others

Some people treat other people’s time like it is refillable. They act as if you can throw away hours, effort, and mental energy and just ask for more later. They think their indecision is harmless. It is not. It is disruptive. It is selfish. And in some cases, it is downright disrespectful. Some of you need to hear this: your inability to make a decision is not a personality quirk. It’s not “being careful.” It’s not “just how you are.” It’s laziness, fear, and self-absorption wrapped into one, and the fact that you let it spill over into other people’s lives is disrespectful.

Picture This!

You ask me for help with something. I agree. I mentally lock it in, shift my priorities, and set aside time so it gets done.

Then, at the last minute, you change your mind. I ask if you are sure. You say yes. I take you at your word. I let it go.

The next day, you are suddenly back asking me to help with the exact same task you told me you no longer needed. This time, you want me to drop everything again to accommodate you.

And my answer is no.

Not because I am petty. Not because I am angry. But because this is not the first time you have done it. You made me rearrange my life for you, then you took it back. And now you expect me to do it again with the same likelihood you will cancel again.

I am not playing that game.

When you ask for someone’s help, you are asking for their time. Time is the one thing they cannot get back.
When you cancel at the last minute, you are not just changing your mind. You are throwing away the mental and logistical work they already put into showing up for you.

When you return asking for the same thing again, you are not just being indecisive. You are assuming they will endlessly rearrange their life to match your lack of planning.

That is entitlement.

If you cannot commit to a decision, then do not drag other people into your half-baked plans.
If you do commit, then follow through.
If you cancel, accept that you may have just closed the door on that help. No one is obligated to keep standing in line for you while you figure out what you want.

Your inability to make up your mind is your burden to carry. It is not a reason for others to constantly rework their schedules.

Respect people’s time. Respect their effort. Respect their willingness to help you. Once you have made a habit of canceling, rescheduling, and changing your mind, you are not just a little indecisive. You are unreliable.

And unreliable people do not get unlimited chances.

—HumanityECW 

The Rise of Generative AI

Creativity, Copyright, and the Future of Originality

Artificial intelligence is no longer just a tool for automation and data analysis. It has evolved into a creative partner that can write stories, compose music, design logos, and even generate entire videos. This new wave of AI, known as generative AI, is reshaping the creative landscape in ways we could hardly imagine a decade ago.

From ChatGPT and Midjourney to Sora and Suno, these tools are being used by artists, writers, designers, and filmmakers around the world. But with this exciting evolution come important questions. Can content created by machines truly be called "original"? What happens to copyright law in a world where anyone can generate professional-grade content in seconds? And most importantly, how does the rise of generative AI impact the future of human creativity?

Many creators are embracing AI as a helpful assistant. Writers use AI to brainstorm plot ideas or overcome writer's block. Designers experiment with AI-generated imagery for inspiration. Filmmakers are starting to use AI to storyboard or even generate scenes from text descriptions.

However, there's a growing concern that AI could also replace some human creators. If an AI can produce a painting, a song, or an article at a fraction of the time and cost, will companies still hire artists and writers? Some fear that AI will devalue human creativity, turning it into just another algorithm-driven product.

Copyright law was not built with generative AI in mind. Traditionally, for a work to be protected under copyright, it must be created by a human. But AI-generated content often has no direct human author. Instead, a user inputs a prompt, and the AI generates the result based on patterns learned from vast datasets of existing works.

This raises critical legal questions. Who owns the output of an AI tool—the user, the company that built the AI, or no one at all? And what about the training data? Many generative models are trained on publicly available content, including copyrighted works. Several lawsuits have already been filed, challenging the legality of this practice and demanding new regulations.

Another issue lies in defining originality. If an AI generates an image that looks like a Van Gogh painting, is it derivative or innovative? Can a song composed by AI in the style of The Beatles be considered a new creative work?

In some ways, AI forces us to rethink what originality means. Humans, after all, are also influenced by what they consume. The difference is that AI can process and replicate millions of examples instantly, while human inspiration happens more slowly and subconsciously.

Despite the challenges, many experts believe AI will not replace human creativity but will expand it. Artists can now do more with less. Small studios can produce high-quality content without massive budgets. Writers can use AI to translate ideas into multiple languages instantly, reaching global audiences.

At the same time, the legal and ethical frameworks surrounding AI must evolve. Clear guidelines are needed to define ownership, protect human creators, and ensure transparency in how AI models are trained and used.

Generative AI is not just a technological trend. It is a cultural shift that challenges our understanding of creativity, originality, and authorship. Whether we see it as a threat or an opportunity, one thing is clear: the creative world will never be the same.

—HumanityECW