Self-love is your superpower! Increasing your self-loves is one of the most powerful things you can do to become magnetic to attract people and experiences you want into your life.
Our culture has conditioned us to think we’re not good enough, not loveable as we are. This has helped feed the capitalism monster, but has devastated our sense of self-love. In a world that teaches us to criticize ourselves, it’s easy to overlook the importance of appreciating and nurturing the person within. We are sharing practical and mindful approaches to foster self-love to improve.
This month we’re doing a deep dive into self love, the last blog was all about the benefits of self love if you haven’t read that article yet read it here!!
Self-love isn’t just a feel-good concept; it’s a powerful force that positively impacts every aspect of your life. When you truly love and appreciate yourself, you unlock more happiness, confidence, and resilience. The benefits are seen through your relationships, work, and overall well-being. It’s not about being perfect, but about embracing your uniqueness and developing a positive relationship with yourself.
Easy to Use Tips to Build Your Self-Love
Mindful Self Gratitude Practices
Start a gratitude journal to reflect on and appreciate the positive aspects of yourself. Everyday for at least 30 days, write down 10 things you love about yourself, are proud of about yourself, or reasons why you’re amazing. The trick is to not repeat anything you’re writing down. This causes you to get creative at looking at all your positive qualities and automatically trains your brain to focus on all the ways you’re amazing. Acknowledge your strengths and accomplishments, creating a healthier relationship with yourself. This practice helps shift your focus towards the good parts of you, fostering a sense of contentment and self-love.
Empowering Self-Talk
Replace self-criticism with self-compassion. Name the critic in your head to acknowledge that it’s not you. Every time you start to catch yourself being critical of yourself, pause in that moment and say “Ok, I hear you (name of critic).” After that rub your hands together or wiggle your toes in your shoes to ground you and bring you back to your body. Then consciously refocus your energy and attention on what you want to be thinking and feeling, the best possible outcome of the situation.
Be Your Own Cheerleader
When a little kid is learning a new skill, you praise them a lot for every little step they take towards that skill. Even if they don’t achieve it, you encourage them and support them into trying again. Take this approach with yourself. Giving yourself constant kudos may seem silly at first, but our brains are wired to respond strongly to positive affirmations and positive conditioning. Throughout the day, take the time to give yourself compliments and cheering yourself on will consciously engage in positive internal dialogue. If you practice this enough, the positive dialogue will automatically start replacing the negative dialogue in your head. And it’ll make it easier to do the mindful self gratitude practice above.
Nature Connection and Movement
Spending time in mother nature is one of the most beneficial activities you can do for yourself. When you spend more time outdoors and engage in activities that make your body feel good. Being in nature actually has a deeply grounding effect on our bodies because it actually helps us release a build up of positive ions in our body, especially if we sit, lay down, or walk barefoot in the grass. If you don’t have easy access to the outdoors, don’t sweat! Just moving your body is enough to get positive emotions flowing! Whether it’s a walk in the park or turning on your favorite song for a dance session in your living room, movement and nature contribute to your overall well-being and improve your self-love.
Digital Detox
Unplug from electronic devices for at least an hour daily. Disconnecting from the digital world allows you to reconnect with yourself, fostering a deeper sense of presence and self-awareness. We’re so trained to be addicted to our phones. One day I had to turn mine off for an hour and I swear I picked it up like 10 times – talk about an unconscious habit! We are conditioned to look to social media, short videos, and phone games to make us feel good. They are actually psychologically designed to give us just enough dopamine that we feel good for a moment and come back for more feel good brain chemicals. The problem is this is an empty trap that keeps us scrolling, watching, locked into our screens in a way that doesn’t serve us. In many ways it actually feeds our negative emotions to see other people in pretty locations on instagram, looking like they’re living a perfect life, causing us to feel like we’re lacking. When we cultivate a habit of putting down our phones for a little while each day, we can connect with loved ones IRL and nurture hobbies that leave us feeling fulfilled instead of feeling empty.
In this comprehensive guide to cultivating self-love, we’ve shared practical and mindful approaches to help you go on a transformative journey towards embracing and nurturing the incredible person within you. Remember, the journey to self-love is ongoing, and by committing to these practices, you’re investing in your own growth and happiness. Stay tuned for part 3 on even more tips!
