It may seem a foreign concept to love yourself. But it is important that you develop the habit of self-love because it will lead you to become the best version of yourself.
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What it means to love yourself
Loving yourself means accepting yourself for who you are. The good as well as the bad. However, it does not imply believing statements such as “hey, this is me, take it or leave it.” No.
Because loving yourself entails being aware of your own strengths and weaknesses. That is, being at ease with yourself while also being open to change, development, and improvement.
When you love yourself, you recognize that you aren’t perfect, but you accept yourself for who you are. You are aware that mistakes will occur, but you are kind to yourself and forgive yourself.
Above all, you take care of your physical and mental well-being. You rest and recharge so that you can continue to be a blessing to others by being a kind, compassionate, and positive person to be around.
Why is it important to love yourself
Sometimes in life, we lose sight of the fact that our greatest asset is ourselves. We often overlook our own needs and find it difficult to slow down and take care of ourselves.
Worse, we believe that loving oneself is selfish and unnatural.
This however should not be the case. Because if you neglect yourself, you will find it hard to keep up with the demands for love and attention from those around you. You will find yourself exhausted and stressed, which will have a negative impact on yourself and the people you care about.
Love your neighbor as you love yourself
In addition, the Bible emphasizes in numerous chapters and verses that you should love your neighbor as you love yourself. It does not say love one over the other.
Being selfless and caring for others is most certainly a virtue.
However, putting others first at the expense of your own well-being will lead to resentment and negative feelings. And if it continues, you will eventually run out of love to give.
So, remember to also love yourself.
Compelling reasons why you should love yourself
Other equally important reasons to love yourself are as follows:
- Gives you a positive attitude,
- Reduces stress,
- Increases happiness,
- Increases confidence,
- Improves your relationships with others,
- Allows for a healthy lifestyle, and
- Increases productivity.
How to develop the habit to love yourself
You will benefit from developing a love yourself habit because you will no longer need to remind yourself to practice self-love. It would have become ingrained in your system. And it becomes a part of your daily life.
What are habits
Habits are the automatic thoughts, feelings, or actions that you perform. These are the actions that do not require the use of your decision-making brain.
As a result, once you develop the habit of loving yourself, it will no longer be difficult to show yourself some love; it will become a natural occurrence.
Here are some ideas to help you develop a habit of loving yourself.
Be gentle with yourself
Everyone makes mistakes. It’s part of life. Therefore you should cut yourself some slack.
Living with the mistake is hard enough; don’t have to make it any harder by berating yourself. If anyone needs kindness, it should be you first.
Take time to review and reflect on the thoughts and actions that led to the mistake. What can you learn from your mistake? Could you have done it differently? How can you improve upon the mistake?
After you have reflected on the mistake, you can then let go. Mistakes are not final. You can always try again.
Calm your inner voice
Your inner voice can be your worst critic at times. It constantly replays your previous mistakes and failures.
Although a healthy dose of reflection on your mistakes or failures will help you learn and improve. A constant barrage of negative reminders is not good for your mental well-being.
So, when your inner critic begins to run wild in your head, remain calm and gently break the thought.
It could entail literally thinking the word ‘STOP!’ Alternatively, you could simply focus your thoughts on more positive things. Or, directing your attention to the present moment.
Know that you cannot please everyone
Trying to please everyone is a recipe for disaster. It cannot be done. You will end up stressed, hurt, and exhausted.
People will always have something to say. And these may not always be favorable to you. The thing is, don’t go out of your way to change their minds about you.
All you have to do is stay true to yourself, your values, and your beliefs. Have faith in your abilities. Recognize that you are a unique individual with your own quirks.
If people like you, well and good. If they don’t, ignore them. Focus on yourself and the people who value you for who you are.
When you stop worrying about why people don’t like you, you can focus on improving yourself and your abilities. Which will benefit you and those you care about.
Live a healthy lifestyle
As the Bible says,
For no one has ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, as the Messiah does the church.
– Ephesians 5:29
Living a healthy lifestyle is a great way to love yourself. Although circumstances may not always allow for a balanced and healthy way of life. Here are some simple tips you can use to live a healthy lifestyle.
- Eat healthy. Add more fruits and vegetables to your meals.
- Get enough sleep. Your body will benefit from 7-8 hours of sleep because it will have enough time to repair itself.
- Get moving. You don’t have to get a gym subscription. You could always go for a walk. Regular stretching and random cardio at home should also suffice.
- Drink plenty of water for proper hydration.
- Meditate. Taking 10-15 minutes a day to calm your brain allows you to reduce stress and improve your focus.
- Soak in the sun. It aids in the production of Vitamin D, which is beneficial to the bones.
Just say no
We sometimes overextend ourselves as a result of things we did not say no to. Remember that saying yes to other people means saying no to yourself.
Replace the habit of saying yes with a ready non-committal response such as “let me check my calendar” or “I have something scheduled during that time. Please allow me to double-check and get back to you.”
This gives you time to consider the possibility of the request. That is if you can and are willing to do the request. If not, then simply say no.
It will be difficult at first, but you and they will get used to it.
Find a hobby
Finding an interesting hobby to participate in will not only provide you with something productive to do. It will also help you improve your creativity, self-esteem, and sense of accomplishment.
Aside from these advantages, having a hobby can help you reduce stress, increase happiness, and develop or improve yourself.
There are a number of simple hobbies you can try as a beginner such as walking, running, yoga, reading, journaling, or meditation.
Giving yourself some self-love through a hobby is never a bad idea.
Keep learning
When you love yourself, you will find ways to better yourself. You keep learning.
Although you can live and are comfortable with yourself, you also have a strong desire to continue learning and improving yourself.
So, don’t allow yourself to become stationary and stagnant. Keep moving forward. Pursue your goals and dreams no matter how outlandish and seemingly impossible they appear to be.
Quotes to love yourself
And to help strengthen your resolve to develop the habit to love yourself, here are some of the best self-love quotes.
Read through them whenever you have doubts regarding your actions about loving yourself.
1. “When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everyone will respect you.”
– Lao Tzu
2. “In order to love who you are, you cannot hate the experiences that shaped you.”
– Andrea Dykstra
3. “Love yourself enough to set boundaries. Your time and energy are precious. You get to choose how you use it. You teach people how to treat you by deciding what you will and won’t accept.”
– Anna Taylor
4. “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”
– Budhha
5. “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
– Oscar Wilde
6. “It is better to be alone than in bad company.”
– George Washington
7. “You deserve someone who makes you feel like the otherworldly creature you are. Yourself.”
– Amanda Lovelace
8. “You owe it to yourself to become everything you’ve ever dreamed of being.”
– Unknown
9. “I must undertake to love myself and to respect myself as though my very life depends upon self-love and self-respect.”
– Maya Angelou
10. “You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop.”
– Rumi
Summary
To love yourself means to accept yourself for who you are but still be open to development and improvement. It means being kind and forgiving to yourself as it is your way of maintaining positive and healthy overall well-being.
Furthermore, it is important to love yourself because of the following reasons:
- Gives you a positive attitude,
- Reduces stress,
- Increases happiness,
- Increases confidence,
- Improves your relationships with others,
- Allows for a healthy lifestyle, and
- Increases productivity.
And, given the importance of self-love, it would be beneficial to develop a love-yourself habit. So that it becomes a natural occurrence in your daily life.
Some of the ways you can develop the habit of self-love are as follows:
- Be gentle with yourself,
- Calm your inner voice,
- Know that you cannot please everyone,
- Live a healthy lifestyle,
- Just say no,
- Find a hobby, and
- Keep learning.
Please share your thoughts or ideas about Develop The Habit To Love Yourself in the comments below. And if you liked this article, you might be interested as well in these articles:
Why Good Habits Beat Motivation
How To Define Yourself By Your Habits
9 Effective Habits For A Happy Life
Building Good Habits For Your To Be
How To Break 9 Bad Habits That Keep You Down
The Best Inspirational Quotes To Love Yourself
Why The Need To Love Yourself
Outside reference/s:
10 Reasons Why Self-Love Is Important
10 Ways To Build The Self-Love Habit
50 Self-Love Quotes to Boost Your Confidence and Lift Your Spirits
