10 Ways You Can Practice Self-love Everyday

The concept of self-love is constantly floating around our newsfeeds and is being marketed as this magical thing we need to practice in order to be happy with ourselves. But, contrary to what every brand wants you to believe, self-love doesn’t start with spoiling yourself and buying everything in order to be happy; the act of self-love goes way beyond treating yourself to a chocolate brownie or the newest eyeshadow palette. 

We know that loving yourself is no easy task. It’s no secret that we are our toughest critics, but as much as we want to push ourselves to do better, we should do better at appreciating ourselves for what we are and what we have accomplished. Here are 10 ways you can practice self-love in your everyday life. 

• Tell yourself something positive every morning 

In the midst of your wild morning, pause and tell yourself something positive. This could be a kind comment about what you’re wearing or looking like that day, or a reminder of an accomplishment or how you dealt with a tough situation. Any of these different scenarios will help you start your day off right. 

• Fuel your body with good food

You need to eat properly in order to feel your best and perform well. For that reason, you should be sure that you’re fuelling your body with nutritious ingredients and lots of water. If you work a lot, try meal prepping as it will make your life much easier during the week and will help you stay away from fast food. Making your own food will also hold you accountable and give you something to focus on to better yourself. 

• Surround yourself with those who love and encourage you

Toxic people should have no place in your life. To be your best, you have to surround yourself with people who push you to do better, encourage you and love you. Having individuals who don’t wish you well will only hold you back and keep you from being your best self. So, take a look at those you spend your free time with, how do they impact your life? Based on that answer, you should be able to make a decision on whether they belong in your life or not.

• Stop comparing yourself to others 

Comparing yourself will never do you any good. In fact, it will have you feeling down on yourself and critiquing yourself way too much. If you’re comparing your physical aspects to others on social media, remember that so much editing and photoshopping is done to many of the photos you see. If you’re simply comparing yourself to others based on their accomplishments, go back to your list of goals and fine tune that, instead of spending time worrying about what others are up to. 

• Celebrate your wins

Growing will come with lots of trials and tribulations, but in order to show yourself love, you should celebrate your wins. Think of the things you have accomplished personally and professionally and give yourself a pat on the back for them. It takes a lot to be able to accomplish your goals and actually start winning, so congratulations! Now give yourself some credit where it’s due. 

• Unfollow accounts that make you feel bad about yourself 

Does scrolling down your Instagram feed make you feel bad about yourself? You’re not the only one. Following your favourite celebrities or bloggers can feel like the most natural thing to do, but when doing so is causing us pain and agony, it’s really not worth it. It’s hard not to look at these figures and pick at your own body. So, if you’re not feeling strong enough to not compare yourself, don’t follow these accounts all together.

• Forgive yourself, but learn from your mistakes 

We all have certain things we wish we did differently, people we wish we didn’t spend time with and decisions we wish we didn’t make, that’s just how life goes. But, it’s important to keep in mind that humans make mistakes and life goes on. Take some time to show yourself some love and forgive yourself for the mistakes you made. Make sure you learned something from each of those mistakes and use them to fuel your future decisions. 

• Find your happy place

Your happy place could be a certain park by your house or a local coffee shop. Wherever it is, your happy place will play a very important role in grounding you and making you feel better on those inevitable sad days. We can only do so much to try and make every day a good day, but the reality is that just isn’t going to happen. This happy place will play a huge role every time you need some peace and quiet. 

• Give up the need for approval

There’s no way everyone under the sun is going to love and appreciate you, it just isn’t possible. You aren’t always going to get praised or accepted, but you need to learn to give up that need for approval. Remind yourself that you are enough and that only you can show yourself that you’re enough, not anyone else. This might be a difficult thing for those who constantly rely on other people’s opinions when evaluating themselves, but it’s a great lesson to learn and practice. 

• Shift your energy 

Those bad days will come around every now and then, but you shouldn’t let them take you over completely. Shift the negative energy to something a little more positive. For example, find something you’re grateful for or think of someone you deeply love in order to get your head out of your current negative space. Remember your goals & purpose. These things will help shift your energy completely and make you focus on what actually matters.