Accepting who you are can be difficult, especially when so much of the world around you is trying to show you how deficient you are. There are many ways to feel put down. Whether it is from that pesky little voice inside your head reminding you of all your flaws. Or the media constantly telling you that you aren’t complete without their latest product. Even people may be quick to point out what they think you are lacking. With all of this potential negativity, sometimes you need a reminder that you are enough. You are worthy. And you are beautiful. Self-acceptance is your ability to be happy with who you are every day. This means accepting the good, the bad, and the ugly. The road to loving yourself through these obstacles is a long one filled with detours and potholes. But, somewhere along the journey, you learn to love the adventure.
It’s no doubt that you will encounter daily obstructions of your self-acceptance, instead of believing the negativity, use them as a learning experience. When you start to think negative thoughts about yourself, stop and tell yourself how inspiring you actually are, and then trace back to the beginning and look at the why behind them. See if you notice a pattern. If, for instance, you BEGIN your negative self-talk when you drive past a gym, think about what this means to you. Do you think you should start exercising or get more use out of your current membership? Whatever the catalyst is, take a minute and discover the root of the issue. When you are able to do this, develop a plan to change your behaviors.
Regardless of how thick-skinned you believe yourself to be, putdowns can be more hurtful than you realize. It takes 10 compliments to make up for every insult. Make time in your day to tell yourself how fantastic you are. This can be anything from surface comments like telling yourself you have a cute smile to more profound ones such as “I am compassionate.” The type of compliments you are doling out are not important, but rather the quantity of them is. Every chance you get, take a second to give yourself some recognition of how awesome you are.
In order to lead a balanced life, your words need to be in harmony with your actions. Meaning that in addition to being kind mentally and verbally, you must also show compassion through your actions. This means taking proper care of yourself. Don’t let yourself run ragged and then try to pick up the pieces, but rather take breaks and honor your needs along the way. The goal of self-care is to practice it in some capacity everyday. You don’t need to do anything elaborate or expensive to accomplish this GOAL. Daily self-care can be as simple as going for a 10-minute walk to clear your head or calling a friend to catch up. Whatever self-care means to you, practice it as often as you can.
Of course there will always be a reason to doubt how fabulous you are. Remember that we are all reflections of one another. How a person feels about themselves is revealed in how they treat not only themselves, but those around them. If you notice that someone in your life is constantly trying to bing you down, it could be that they are afraid of changing who they are in order to accomplish their goals. Try not to let people like this affect you, instead accept them for where they are at on their journey and surround yourself with people who will encourage you to be the best version of yourself.
It is important to realize that the progress of self-acceptance takes time and patience. Be kind to yourself if you slip up and start your negative self-talk or forget to practice self-care. In these moments, recognize how awesome you are for realizing your misstep and give yourself a pat on the back. There is always a reason not to be satisfied with where you are at in life, but it’s unlikely to change if you are only looking at how unhappy you are. It is normal to want to better yourself. Instead of thinking what you lack, concentrate on your strengths and then use them to help accomplish your goals.