Enemy image isn't limited to wars; enemyfying others is one way to lead to conflicts and even violence in our daily lives.
What's underneath the enemyfying is blaming. Blaming others makes it easy. When people blame others for all their problems, they are off the hook and don't have to take any responsibilities to take care of things, including themselves.
It is also about scarcity thinking. "If it weren't for them!" In our mind, we believe that if someone else gets it, then our needs won't be met. Since the belief is there isn't enough for everyone, it's us or them.
Enemyfying is a damaging behavior that works against connection. What feels like a connection because we don't like the same people isn't a real connection but "the counterfeit connection at best," said Brené Brown.
It doesn't serve any real needs but a distraction, pushing us off the emotional balance and hijacking our attention away from what truly matters.
Instead of finding someone to blame or seeing some group as "the enemy," the resilient path is to focus on the change we commit to make.
If we don't know what we want to change, instead of blaming others for our problems, let's start by learning about ourselves and what we are longing for.
