Importance of self-love
It’s funny that this is the first quote I’m starting out with but I figure, why not start with a little self-love?
Is this true though? You name everything, your mother, other family members, friends, even your dog/cat made the list, before you mention yourself, if even you mention yourself. Are we biologically disposed to put ourselves last, because we do this quite often? Is it easier to love others than to love yourself? On the other hand, is it selfish to love yourself and actually name yourself first? OK…I get it, too many questions.
Stand firm
We’ve all at some point been a victim of this. It’s probably just natural to name other people and things. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, but maybe, just maybe we don’t actually love ourselves that much. Or probably, we are unaware of our own self love. Well, I am here to emphasize the importance of self-love. You see, we currently live in a world where we can easily become distracted on the importance of self. Simply because we are so focused on other people’s lives. How they are living, how much money they have, how many vacations they take each year and the list goes on. So rather than investing that same energy internally, we have somehow been socially constructed to focus externally. It’s no wonder we don’t name ourselves first when the opportunity presents itself.
On a serious note, there can be other things happening in someone’s life that will force them to place more emphasis on others. The world can be a cruel place to live sometimes and not many people are made to withstand its cruelty. It is not afraid to make you feel like you’re ugly because you do not look like all the plastic walking around, or you are fat because you do not fit the unrealistic body size ideals in Hollywood. It’s no wonder you don’t love yourself as much. Instead you’re busy comparing yourself and your life to others.
Stay strong
Sometimes, even the very people who life chose for us (family) can be disappointing and problematic. Family is supposed to support your growth but sometimes they are not present. When they are not there to provide support, you have to dig deep inside you to find it. You have to bring that warrior out and keep going. There will definitely be some down moments but you have to realize that you can’t force someone to be in your life if they don’t want to. It is not your duty to compel someone to love you even when they are supposed to. It’s your duty to love yourself and love those who love you. So loving yourself does not mean you will disregard others. It means if others disregard you, you will be fine.
Self-love from the inside and out
Therefore, when you love yourself and put yourself first, often these problems and disappointments washes off you like water on a duck’s back. People are often not disappointed when they don’t have expectations. So don’t allow yourself to feel inadequate because of how the world feel you should be. Pick yourself up, do something special for you and practice every single day until you become a natural to love yourself. Although loving yourself starts within, you should also nourish the outside too as this will certainly add to how you ultimately feel. When you look good, you also feel good. That being said, invest your hard earned money in products that are natural and pure, is made up of organic ingredients and is affordable. Your skin is the largest organ and is visible to the world. (especially in the summer, if you know what I mean) Treat it good because often times people become or start to feel insecure because their skin does not shine. Companies like Shiny leaf and 100% pure have taken the worry out of using their products by making them natural and safe. So treat yourself well on the inside and on the outside because loving yourself is a two way street.
A little advice
Again, try not to rely too heavily on others for love but rather on yourself as this type of love will get you through the many hurdles life presents. As the late Whitney Houston sung so beautifully, “learning to love yourself, it is the greatest love of all.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYzlVDlE72w. And if you so happen to have children, please instill this attitude in them. This will give them the wings they need to navigate this cold, cold world. Try not to care too much either, or allow the thoughts of others to imprison you. Live your best life, you only have one. So long as you are not hurting anyone or yourself, you’re good. The truth is, you are much harder to break when you love yourself.
Focus on you
Have you ever just observed a person who is in love with themselves, not a narcissist, but someone who just adore themselves. Look at the confidence in their walk, the smile on their face and the carefree demeanour that they wear all day long. Almost nothing bothers them and displaying rudeness towards them will only make you look bad. Often times they are so focused on themselves, they didn’t even notice your insolence. I mean when you love yourself, no one can treat you how they see or feel fit. A matter of fact when someone realizes that you cannot be easily broken, they somehow develop the propensity to just let you be. Similarly, they end up respecting you even if they don’t like you. Remember, you don’t have to like someone to respect them and you don’t necessarily have to respect someone you like. All these attributes combined will make you feel so much better about yourself and you will most likely always put you first. Or at the very least, you will remember to name yourself
Count yourself in
Going back to the quote and questions above, I believe we all love ourselves, some more than others. But as is evident, there are many factors that can contribute to someone naming themselves last. Maybe we are not biologically disposed to put others first. Maybe we are just so tied up with life’s problems and distractions that we simply forget to name ourselves. So is it selfish, absolutely not, it is actually protective. So my advice to you is to start practicing self-love so that if you are ever asked that question it won’t take you long before you name yourself. My friends, until next time, keep calm and blog on.
