Life is hard, but it is a beautiful thing. We all have things and people who are important to us, sometimes so important that we put them before ourselves, which is fine...but there comes a time when we need to look at ourselves and think about what we want and what we have to do to get it. It could be a best friend who requires a lot of time and attention because they have a lot going on, or it could be a boyfriend or girlfriend who you want to invest as much time and energy into as you can, or even certain things in your life can start to take over without you even realizing it, like technology.

The only one deserving of your love...is you. It's time for you to take all the love that others take for granted and invest it in yourself. You shouldn't have to rip yourself into pieces to keep others whole. The right people and relationships will understand if you need to take time for yourself, those are the relationships worth keeping because those people understand your worth as much as you do. If you cannot see your self worth, who can? Remember that you are yours before anyone else’s.

Deciding to put yourself first can be difficult especially when you are a person normally more concerned with the well being of others, but there comes a time in everyone's life when you have to decide to do what is best for you. Putting yourself first and focusing on what truly makes you happy, does not make you selfish. I have news for you, the more time you take for yourself the better person you will be thus you will be able to make an even larger impact of the relationships you have. Putting yourself first does not mean you don't care about others. It means you're smart enough to know you can't help others if you don't help yourself first.

People and relationships will come in and out of your life, but you will always be there for you. You are your own longest commitment. You can't pour out of an empty cup, so always remember to take care of yourself. You owe yourself the love that you so freely give to others…loving yourself is much easier said than done. When you look in the mirror in the morning and see all of your imperfections staring you dead in the eye it’s so hard to remember to love yourself first, but that is the key to genuinely loving others.

Always remember:

You matter

You're important

You're beautiful

You have a HUGE heart

Love yourself

Love others, once you master loving yourself

You are loved

You deserve the world and more

You have what it takes

Talk to yourself like you would talk to someone you love