How to Love Yourself: 8 Ideas on Self-Love

This article sheds some light on tips and habits on how to love yourself a little bit more. Loving yourself is an essential step towards a better and well-balanced life. Self-love is not always an easy thing to do, but it can benefit your overall well-being and build your self-esteem. Here are eight ideas to love yourself more.

1. Self vs. Ego

Do things that genuinely extend who you are from the inside-out and not necessarily from the outside-in. Things that make you feel at peace, content, and connected to your inner self. We live in a world that is ego-driven and social media doesn't make it any better. It's easy to seek outside validation, instant gratification, and doing things out of self-importance. However, more and more people are unhappy, have anxiety, and are depressed. Others are truly good at faking it. However, not to say that everybody you see happy on social media is faking it because that would be untrue. Check if what you are doing makes you feel at ease and peaceful or are you doing things to impress others and put on a show? When you are true to yourself, you can live an authentic life that is suitable for you.

2. Forgiveness and Compassion

It's human nature to have more compassion for other people than you have for yourself. It's easy to forgive others and give them second chances, but what about you? Are you aware that you matter too? Learn to forgive yourself entirely for your past mistakes so that you don't bring all that guilt and shame into a new day. Love yourself unconditionally for the perfectly imperfect person that you are. Try showing yourself a little bit of kindness every day.

3. Self-Acceptance

No human being under the sun is perfect, not even the Duke of Hastings or the wealthiest person in the world. Loving yourself means accepting ALL of you and learning to be comfortable with your limitations. Start by making a list of your weaknesses and flaws. Next, ask yourself what you can do to improve your weaknesses or find people who are great at what you're not good at. For instance, if you're starting a business and you know you're not good at taxes, hire someone who excels in that. If you struggle to process emotions, find a therapist to hold space for you or a great friend. Ultimately accept yourself, improve or let go of what you can't change.

4. Celebrate Your Strengths

What do you excel in? First, make a list of your top traits, skills, and talents. Strengths can look like being a good listener, speaking/presentation, great problem solver, interpersonal skills, ambition, independence, and so forth. Now look at your strengths and identify opportunities or hobbies that match your strengths. You already have the raw materials required to enjoy life and build a good life for yourself. All you need to do is to channel your powers into something beneficial for you.

5. Trust Yourself

Trust is associated with words such as safety, protection, confidence, and believing in what you are feeling without seeking answers to validate your feelings. Trusting yourself starts with trusting your intuition and gut feeling. Think about it as an internal GPS that lets you know when you're heading towards the wrong destination—that feeling when something feels off, but you can't figure out why it feels off. Your body is constantly communicating with you. You need to tune into yourself and believe what it's telling you. Following your intuition can save you from a lot of things that are harmful to your well-being. It can be financial choices, saving you from a potentially toxic relationship or friendship, or simply protecting your peace of mind. How many times did something happen to you, and you said, "I should have listened to myself instead of centering my decisions on outside influences"? We care for and protect the things we love, and this starts with trusting that your intuition has your best interests at heart. Mindfulness meditation, journaling, listening to your feelings, and removing distractions from your daily life are some things that can help you trust yourself more.

6. Self-Discipline

The type of person that you want to become requires effort from you. What are your intentions for your life? What are your values? What are your boundaries? What are your dreams? The kind of life that you want for yourself requires unshakeable effort and self-discipline. Have you realized that you instantly encounter a distraction that clashes with your goal as soon as you decide to do something great for yourself? Let's say you want to start reading a book before bedtime. You go on amazon, read reviews and eventually purchase a book that you like. Then, 1-2 hours before bedtime, you decide to check social media (distraction number 1). You find out that the 3rd season of your favourite TV show is trending (distraction number 2), then you decide to watch one or two episodes of your favourite TV show (distraction number 3), and you end up not reading your book. We rationalize our behaviors even though we know they are not 100% aligned with what we want. Each moment represents us with an opportunity to create a better tomorrow for ourselves and the people around us. See, distractions are beautiful and shiny; they make it hard to do what's essential for your growth. It's up to you to force yourself to do what's best for you, as painful as it is. You have to invest in yourself today for a better and more peaceful tomorrow. When you're so disciplined in doing the things aligned with who you are, your values and goals. That's the most significant sign of self-love. If you say you're going to do something, show up for it and do it. Integrity starts with you.

7. Self-Care

Take care of your emotional/mental, and physical well-being. Take care of yourself internally by being aware of your emotions, monitoring your thoughts, and being cautious of the media you consume and what you're putting into your body. Take care of yourself physically, exercise, go to the dentist, get a massage, take a long bath and incorporate nutritious food into your diet until it becomes a lifestyle change. There is only one YOU in the world. You only have one body so take care of it.

8. Create Joy in Your life

The pandemic has taught us that life is too short and too unpredictable to put your happiness on hold. You can start/continue to love yourself by prioritizing what makes you feel alive and happy. Make it a daily habit to do something that you like, which puts you in your element. What does happiness look like for you? Is it spending time with good people? Is it talking to your friends, wellness, skincare routine? Define what pleasure looks like for you and go for it.

Which Self-Love idea resonated with you the most? Share your thoughts below.

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