This sounds cliché, but it’s probably the truest thing I’ve grown to understand. You cannot love someone else to the fullest until you love yourself first. When we think of love, we think of others and what they mean to us, instead of thinking how we love ourselves and what it means to us. You must love yourself during the good times so that during the bad times you can be there to pick yourself up and bring you back to reality.
It does not matter what other people think of you if you love yourself. When you love who you are, you are accepting your flaws. It doesn’t mean you are accepting of everything you do, think, feel or say. It means you are accepting all that comes with you and the possibilities you have the ability to achieve. When you accept yourself, it gives you the confidence to be content with who you are. You do not have to run around trying to see if you fit in with this crowd, or doing something you wouldn’t normally do to try and be accepted by a certain group.
Loving yourself gives you some of the greatest confidence you will ever have. Not the kind that allows you to walk around like you’re hot stuff, but the kind that is inside. The kind that you strive to have because only YOU can give it to yourself. Insecurities stem from not only the lack of belief in one's self, but falling back on a lack of love you have for yourself. You are less likely to feel anxious and torture yourself over the little things. Love is a gift we shouldn’t overlook.
Having that extra boost of confidence helps you feel better about yourself. If you’re having a bad day, you woke up late and didn’t have time to fix your hair all the way, having that little extra bit of confidence will help you flaunt whatcha got! What can you love about yourself this week that you struggled with last week? Do something that makes you feel good about yourself. Do something extra that makes you love yourself just a little more.
When you love yourself, you are happier. When you are happier, you have more energy. Having that positive energy helps you accomplish so much more like those health goals you keep saying you’re going to do but never get around to doing. It can also help you stop procrastinating. Normally we procrastinate because we don’t have the energy or motivation to do it, but loving yourself gives you that extra energy you need in order to get things done.
You must put yourself first. Learn to love yourself before you can love someone else. Learn to accept all your flaws and the things you cannot change. Concentrate on your strong points. Focus on what makes you you. Say the things on your heart, love the heck out of people, be bold and know you’re beautiful; be unashamed in who you are.
