“As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links, and I may receive a commission for purchases made through them.”

We live in a world that feels like being inside a washing machine with countless colorful clothes. If we’re not careful for even a moment, we can easily be stained by the colors of others—by their thoughts and their ways of life. This is a story about having the strength of mind to protect your own unique color from being unintentionally dyed.

There’s a saying, “You are known by the company you keep,” which emphasizes the importance of our environment. As social beings, we can never be completely free from the influence of those around us. Sometimes, this influence is a positive stimulus for growth, but other times, we get swept up in a negative wave that causes us to lose ourselves.

This is especially true when we look into the glamorous lives of others on social media. According to the ‘Social Comparison Theory’ proposed by psychologist Leon Festinger, humans have an innate desire to evaluate their own abilities by comparing themselves to others. In this process, we often make upward comparisons, diminishing our own worth or unconsciously trying to fit ourselves into someone else’s standards. Our own uniqueness and standards of happiness become blurred, and we find ourselves craving the approval of others, riding the emotional rollercoaster of ‘likes.’

So, how can we protect ourselves in such a world? The ancient Roman Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius said, “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” He believed that it is not external events that cause us pain, but our ‘judgment’ of them. In other words, the key to tranquility lies in focusing on what we can control (our thoughts, our values), not on the uncontrollable external world (the lives of others, societal standards).

Recently, I discovered a piece of wisdom about protecting myself from a very mundane laundry habit: using ‘dye-trapping laundry sheets.’ When you put white and colored clothes in the washing machine together, adding one of these small sheets prevents the colors from bleeding. The sheet absorbs the dye that comes out of the colored clothes, protecting the white ones. After the laundry is done, I look at the sheet, now dark with all the absorbed colors, and then at the clothes that have retained their original hues, and it makes me think.

Perhaps what our minds need is a little sheet like that. We have to live and interact with others. We cannot, and need not, avoid the various colors of the world. However, we do need a ‘filter for the mind’—something to strain out the dyes of unnecessary comparison and self-blame, so that their colors don’t carelessly stain us.

A dye-trapping sheet doesn’t attack the other clothes. It simply floats around in the washing machine, silently absorbing the loose dye. We can be the same. We don’t need to criticize or turn away from the lives of others; we just need to protect our own center and take the time to prevent unnecessary emotions from seeping in.

In an age where authenticity is more valued than ever, the idea that being yourself is the most unique and happiest way to be has never been more powerful. Your unique color is beautiful and precious in itself. If you feel like you’ve lost yourself by being colored by others, why not start a ‘mental laundry’ with the small act of tossing a dye-trapping sheet into your washing machine? I’m cheering for your courage to protect your color.