50 Ways To Practice Self-Love
Self love is something I'm trying to get better at and I'm only human. Some people just ooze self confidence and spread it everywhere they go. And i think as you get older, you start valuing and appreciating yourself more or at least trying to. Learning to love ourselves can be a pretty hard journey to embark on, it may take a while or it could happen just like that. However, there are ways to practice self-love on a daily basis which can have a major effect on the way we think and feel about ourselves. We must think of ourselves as we would our best friend or a loved one, how we lift them up when they are down, how we tell them they are worthy of the very best, how we compliment them, are kind to them, and.... you get the gist.
So why are we so harsh on ourselves? Why do we think the worst of ourselves, things we wouldn't dare say to a loved one but we say to ourselves. The thing is, practicing self-love is just hard. When our expectations of ourselves are high, or when the pressures of life feel too heavy to bear, our own self-esteem is often the first thing to suffer. Naturally, we are our own worst critics and are too quick to forget that we are worth loving.
1. Stop comparing yourself to others. It's inevitable that the inner critic will come out but the more and more you look at others' lives instead of your own, the more you'll punish yourself. The only person you should be in competition with is yourself. When you find yourself comparing yourself to others, let it act as a mirror to where you’re judging yourself and could show yourself more compassion.
2. Tell yourself 'I am an amazing, worthy, beautiful, unique human being and full of all things sugar, spice and all things nice'.
3. Get creative. Write a song, a poem even a book, paint a picture, express yourself in any way you like. You might end up surprising yourself by finding a new hidden talent of yours. We're all creative human beings with a powerful imagination, don't be afraid to use it. Let your creative mind run free.
4. Write down a list of things you love about yourself and read them back to yourself every morning and night. Look in the mirror and say them out loud.
5. Believe that everyone is doing the best they can with what they know with where they are right now
6. Celebrate your wins. No matter how big or small, you deserve a big pat on a back because, you are a champion. Treat yourself every time you've done something good. Be proud of what you have achieved.
7. Stick to your guns. Having an opinion on something is great but not everyone will agree with you, and that's totally OK. Be kind. It's important, however, to stay true to your values and beliefs and to not change them just because someone else doesn't like it.
8. Take time to yourself to relax. Run a bath with relaxing music and unwind.
9. Take a day to yourself, clear your calendar, and only do things that you think will bring you joy and delight. Or do nothing at all, and don’t feel guilty. Take that mental health day and recharge your batteries
10. Make a feel good playlist with all your favourite songs including the songs with inspirational messages.
11. Embrace your differences. Everyone is unique but that's what makes each of us special. Everyone has a different story. Those flaws you speak of? Those 'flaws' are what makes you beautiful, they make you. YOU
12. Get dressed up and go on a date with yourself to a nice restaurant or a trip to the cinema. Feel empowered, not awkward! Enjoy your own company.
13. Spend time with your loved ones, that make you feel alive, inspired, and deeply accepted.
14. Realise we all mess up. We all make mistakes That’s a part of life and if you don’t, you’re not doing life right. Embrace failure. Use it to grow, not sink. We're all winging life, after all we are human. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.
15. Allow yourself to dream BIG. Ask yourself “What do I really want in life?” "What do i really desire?" and don’t settle for anything less than that! You are so worthy of your wildest daydreams. Keep on dreaming. Keep on reaching for the stars.
16. Accept your bad days as simply that– bad days. We all have them. Life isn't easy (sadly). Be willing to embrace your imperfections, and don’t set such high standards for yourself emotionally, mentally, or (especially) physically. It’s normal to feel sadness, pain, and disappointment, as everyone experiences low points in life.
17. Treat others the way you want to be treated. This is important. In order for you to respect yourself, you have to respect others. It makes us feel a lot better when we are kind and compassionate. Unfortunately, not everyone will reciprocate but that's on their conscience, not yours! Be kind always.
18. Value your alone time. Many of us fear being alone, as we find ourselves lost in the whirlwind of our own thoughts. Private moments of soul searching in a comforting place will motivate you to continue nurturing and building your self-love. Time by yourself will help you to learn exactly who you are and the person that you should be loving. Recognise what it is that makes you happy, motivates you and annoys you. The more you know about yourself, the more there is to like.
19. Empathise. The most powerful thing you can do for someone is say, “Me too.” NOT judge or lecture. Everyone just wants to be heard, understood, and to feel important. Everyone deserves love and empathy.
20. Let music move you to a beautiful place of self-acceptance. I love songs with a powerful yet beautiful messages. Every song has a special meaning to them.
21. Honour the fact that you’re human. You’re going to have good days, bad days, and in-between days, and it’s all crazy, normal, and a fact of life.
22. Expand your interests. To really love yourself there has to be plenty to love. Try things you’ve never tried, go to places you’ve never been and learn about stuff you know absolutely nothing about. The more that makes up who you are, the more there is more to like about yourself. Keep learning is to keep growing.
23. Be mindful of your thoughts and feelings. Remember that you are full of lovely thoughts waiting to grow. Water these thoughts and tend to these thoughts, while letting the negative thoughts come and go. We can’t avoid negative thoughts or feelings, but we can choose to nurture the positive feelings. Learn to admit how you really feel and then you can learn to accept it. Stop living the way you think you should and start doing what feels right. It's your life, you are the one having to live it. So create the life you want.
24. Learn to say no. This really doesn't make you a bad person, it makes you an intelligent person who knows what you want. Period.
25. Write in a journal. Write down your thoughts. Write anything that calls you. Ideas, experiences, dreams, frustrations get them out of your head and down on paper. Write them all down on a piece of paper, no matter how crazy, mean, sad, or terrifying they are. (This is something i should start doing, that's for sure.)
26. List the things that you like about yourself. We can all list the things that we don’t like about ourselves. So turn that around and think about your many positive qualities. Something like: "i like my laugh, i like that I'm open minded, i like that I'm kind hearted, i like that I'm sensitive, i like that I'm a sucker for a chick flick" etc
27. Listen to music. Listen to whatever makes you happy. Listen to what makes you sing along.
28. Be silly every now and again. We take ourselves too seriously. Let go. Be spontaneous and outrageous!
29. Trust yourself. You are smart, capable and talented. Your choices are just as valid as anyone else’s. Don’t second guess yourself. You are so much more than you give yourself credit for and you deserve to be happy.
30. Stand up for yourself. Your needs are important. Don’t let anyone disregard them. Pushing back can be scary but empowering too!
31. Take pride in the hard times that you have overcome. What didn’t kill you made you stronger. It wasn’t easy, but you did it!
32. Give yourself a positive mantra. Start each day by telling yourself something really positive. How well you handled a situation, how lovely you look today. Anything that will make you smile.
33. Don’t believe everything you think. There is an inner critic inside of us trying to keep us small and safe. The downside is this also stops us from living a full life. YOU ARE BEAUTIFULLY, WONDERFULLY AND AUTHENTICALLY YOU
34. Be realistic. There is no person on this earth that is happy every single moment of every single day. You know why? Because we are all human. We make mistakes, we feel emotions (good and bad) and this is OK. Allow yourself to be human.
35. Find your happy place. Where’s the one place you feel totally at ease, calm, happy, positive, high on life? Go to that place when you are going through hard times, or imagine yourself being there. Think about how it feels, what it smells like, what it looks like.
36. Have fun! Get out there and do the things that light your fire. Enjoy them, enjoy being you and enjoy your incredible life. As the saying goes: Life is like a roller coaster, live it, be happy, enjoy life.
37. Get yourself dolled up and wear your favourite perfume because why not.
38. Watch your favourite movie or TV series. For the 20th time. And just lose yourself in the story.
39. Pet other animals in public... with permission of course. Petting dogs just leaves me with a smile on my face and the need to have that dog.
40. Buy a colouring book and some crayons. Zen out and colour away. Colouring is a great stress reliever.
41. Write down five things that you are proud of and stick the list in your bag to pull out to remind yourself that you're awesome.
42. Tell yourself ‘I am beautiful. I am worthy. I am enough. I am unique’.
43. Indulge in something you love and remind yourself why it's one of your favourite things.
44. Forgive yourself. Stop giving yourself a hard time over things you can't control and give yourself a break. We're all doing the best we can so be gentle with yourself.
45. Get in front of a mirror or your phone and smile. Take a minute to acknowledge your looks and appreciate your favourite part of your face. Selfies are a great form of self-care. I like to do this every other day.
46. Read inspirational quotes
47. Dance around wildly to your favourite, most cheesy songs from your high school years or favourite songs at the minute.
48. Look up examples of people who have gone through and made it through what you’re currently facing. Seek out models of inspiration.
49. Challenge yourself to try something new.
50. Write a letter to your future self about your goals and dreams and all the good that’s going on for you right now and what you want your future self to remember.
"THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP IN YOUR LIFE IS THE RELATIONSHIP YOU HAVE WITH YOURSELF. BECAUSE NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE WITH YOURSELF"
- DIANE VON FURSTENBERG
This is what I aim to go by when I'm feeling my lowest or when i need a little TLC. As the quote says, we're with ourselves for most of the time so why not be kinder to ourselves? You deserve love, kindness, patience and acceptance, be gentle with yourself and allow yourself to be the perfectly imperfect, unique version of yourself, as we all are.
I hope you took some inspiration from this post and remember we all fall down sometimes, at all costs be kind to yourself.
How do you practice self love?
