Self-love is a situation whereby we are able to truly appreciate ourselves through words, actions etc. It could also mean working on improving our physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing to encourage growth.
It could involve:
1. Talking to and about yourself with love:
There are times when we literally say hurtful things to ourselves. This could be because things didn’t work out as we planned, or we feel others are better than us, or generally because we do not love ourselves enough. The truth is we cannot truly love someone else if we do not love ourselves. As the old saying goes “charity begins at home”. Love can only come from inside-out.
2. Making yourself a priority:
Learn to value yourself. Make your mental and physical well-being a priority. Make conscious efforts to be happy and ensure you stay sane. Always track your growth and progress.
3. Trusting yourself to make the right decisions:
Most times, we make great decisions and we are convinced within us that we have made such great decisions but self doubt kicks in and this makes us question all these beautiful decisions and ideas which we came up with and this stems from lack of love for ourselves.
4. Leave your comfort zone and try something new:
Being able to achieve something that we never thought we could is such a great feeling. The joy is so unique. Do not always dwell on the statusquo. Keep exploring new ideas, new paths to success, spice things up, while having fun and leaving a relaxed life.
5. Quit the harmful comparison:
You noticed I used the word “harmful”. In as much as comparison can be helpful for motivation and growth, Sometimes, we do it the wrong was thus leading to self doubt, jealousy, and illfeeling. According to social comparison theory, we do this in an attempt to make accurate evaluations of ourselves. Research has found that comparing breeds feelings of envy, low-self confidence, and depression, as well as compromises our ability to trust others.
There are 2 types of comparison:
- Upward social comparison: Comparing ourselves to those we feel are better than us with the aim to improve.
- Downward social comparison: Comparing ourselves to those who we believe are worse than us. This usually makes us feel better about ourselves.
6. Tell yourself positive things:
You can start your day by telling yourself something positive. Most times we get carried away by the negatives that we do not realize how blessed we are. Compliment yourself. Tell yourself how lovely you look. When you handle things well, congratulate yourself or do something nice for yourself. Have you ever responded to a particular situation and got surprised at the way you handled the situation that you say to your self, ‘Damn girl, you are wise!‘ or you look yourself in the mirror and appreciate how beautiful you look? You do not have to wait for others to say beautiful things to you. Say them to yourself!!!
7. Learn to celebrate your wins no matter how big or small
You know, we like to wait until we have a ground-breaking and earth-shaking breakthrough before we celebrate and appreciate ourselves but it’s very important that we start by celebrating the small wins. Simply making it through the day without breaking down and giving up is worth patting yourself on the back for.
“Track your small wins to motivate big accomplishments.”
8. Get rid of toxic relationships:
Avoid people that make you feel less of yourself. we are all amazing, PERIODTTTTT!!!
9. Be honest with yourself
Hold onto your values. Uphold your integrity and be honest. Correct yourself. Tell yourself when you handle things wrongly and correct yourself, with love. Mistakes are bound to happen.
