Self-Love builds the foundation to your best life. Did you know that loving yourself takes practice and constant attention? Are you loving YOU every day? I mean REALLY loving you? What does that even mean? By definition “self-love” means regard for one’s own well-being and happiness. So often we don’t think about our own well-being or happiness yet it’s necessary for you to create and lead your most meaningful and fulfilled life!
So, how do you begin to “show yourself the love” as I like to say? You take some time for you. You put yourself on the “list” first. You make YOU a priority. Now I know all too well that this is more easily said than done. We take time and give attention to others and their needs all day long without giving it a second thought. However, somehow when we take time for us we often have a rush of negative emotions. Feelings of guilt, self-judgement or second guessing our actions flood our minds. We use words like ‘should’ and tell ourselves that we are selfish or not enough. I’m here to tell you that none of this is true. You are so deserving of self-love, self-care and time. Time is the gift, you just need to allow yourself to take and receive it.
That is a tricky thing to do in a world full of obligations and responsibilities to others. In a world where everyone is over extended, overwhelmed and moving at lightning speed. If you are like most women I know and work with you give all of you and your time to others. You are busy meeting their needs, nurturing and supporting their dreams and desires. When you do that you are left with no time or space for you. You neglect your own simple needs and ultimately find yourself feeling empty, often angry, resentful and perhaps unfulfilled. We get so lost in the care and concern for those around us that when it’s “our turn” we are out of energy and time. So, how do to you learn to take care of you, stand in your power and know it’s ok to take care of your needs? How do you learn to love and care for you first? The answer to these questions is quite simple. However, to see positive change you must take action. Massive self-loving action! The answer is this, you must commit to yourself and the work of loving you more. You must create the time for self-care which often means putting the needs of others aside or doing less. You must practice talking to yourself in a loving way and creating new dialog in your head. When you take time to “show yourself the love” you begin to release negative thoughts and emotions that make you stuck or have you playing the shame blame game. Over time you will learn to acknowledge and release negative thoughts and behaviors without judgement or second guessing. It will be challenging work at first but with daily commitment to you and this practice you will see positive change and begin to love yourself more every single day!
Once you have made a solid commitment to yourself and this new daily practice I suggest you give this exercise a try. This simple exercise takes less than 5 minutes a day. Every morning before you start your day I would like you to take time for what I refer to as “being in the practice”. It’s how we show ourselves love before the day gets crazy. Do it first thing! Your first step is to come up with five loving statements to say to yourself each morning. It will be your new way of starting the day. Once you have your statements written down place them on your night table or even under your pillow and be ready to read them every morning. Sometimes the work of creating these positive affirmations for yourself can be difficult. Here are some examples that I say to myself. Feel free to use these statements in your own practice. Some examples might be:
I am strong
I am safe
I am enough
I am beautiful
I am valuable in the world
I am brave
I am powerful
I am full of gratitude
I am worthy
Saying positive affirmations may feel odd at first. Over time this practice will flow more easily. It will nurture you and help you set the tone for taking better care of yourself throughout the day. Before you know it, you will be loving yourself and your life more.
Positive affirmations train the mind in self-love and deep self-worth. YOU have immense value and talent to share with the world. Sometimes we forget that and treat ourselves poorly. We get burnt out or feel frustrated. A lack of self-love will keep you stuck and contributes to self-sabotaging behavior. You must nurture your need for self-love and act in self-care. You are worth the effort!
This simple practice has the power to change how you treat yourself on a regular basis. It will absolutely lead you to your most joyful life. Those around you will benefit as well for when we take care of ourselves and show ourselves deep love we are more equipped to care for and love others.
An excerpt from my most recent best-selling book, Positive Vibes for Women.
Do this for 30 days and let me know how it goes. I guarantee you will not only begin to feel better about yourself but you will come to believe these things to be true about you! They are already true,
you just might need to be reminded or empowered by this positive daily practice Listen to your own needs.
You are so deserving of deep self-love. Enjoy this new way of taking care of YOU! It will help you reveal your most powerful self. You won’t regret it, I promise.
