When a friend confides in you about their problem, how do you react? Are you understanding and supportive, or do you just tell him to stop complaining and do better? Sure, you're trying to be nice, but what would happen if you had the same problem? You would probably be harder on yourself than you are on your friend. If we sometimes treated our loved ones the way we treat ourselves, we probably wouldn't be very popular.
Why is it so hard to treat yourself and the person you love?
We are raised to think that success depends on discipline and strict rules, but the opposite may be true. Being hard on yourself won't make you perform at your best - taking care of yourself is what really inspires you to succeed.
Self-compassion does not mean complacency and irresponsible behavior; it means doing what's best for you. Of course, it's not always easy, but the key is to try again every day.
But how to achieve this?
1. Enjoy yourself
Self-love is the path to truly realizing your worth. When you love yourself, you don't need validation from others to realize your self-worth. If that seems scary or even impossible, start the same way you would start loving another person - by making a decision. Love is not something that happens by itself; you recognize something worthy of love in someone and open your heart. You can do the same for yourself.
Have fun. Photo: Andrea Piacquadio / Pexels2. Appreciate yourself
Think about everything you do every day. If someone else had the task of doing all these things for you for a day, you would definitely show them gratitude. Why not do the same for yourself? The voice in your head may be telling you to keep moving forward, but it's your self-love that will really push you forward. Respecting yourself also means appreciating everyone who helped you become who you are today.
3. Forgive yourself
Small mistakes and big slips - all this is already behind you. Self-blame stops you from moving forward, as the fear of repetition paralyzes you. Forgive yourself, fix what you can, learn from it and move on. It's not easy, but if you start treating yourself like someone you love, it will be easier to find a way to be kind to yourself.
4. Get to know each other
Connect with your feelings. Wouldn't you like to know someone you love? We often don't analyze what we feel or why, but simply move on. When it comes to negative emotions, we tend to push them under the rug because introspection is challenging. But once you start to understand your emotions, managing them becomes much easier.
Accept yourself. Photo: Alesiakozik / Pexels5. Accept yourself
No matter what you discover on your journey to self-love, you have to embrace it – both your good qualities and the ones you don't like. Just accepting yourself means that you are aware of your worth and that you are at peace with your strengths and weaknesses. Self-acceptance is difficult, but it is the key to lasting inner satisfaction.
Love to yourself is a lifelong journey towards happiness, but starting that journey can be challenging. If you've been through hard times, it may seem almost impossible. But if you start treating yourself like someone you love, you will find a way around your insecurities and the answer. Each small step will bring you closer to self-love, which is the ultimate goal of this journey.
