Respect Yourself to Protect Yourself
Respect yourself, girlfriend. STOP comparing yourself to others…on the Internet or elsewhere!
Commit to falling in love with you just as you are. Fall in love with the concept of having a healthy self-esteem.
Easy to say, of course. So how best to do this? You can do it in six steps:
One: Decide that this is something that you’re open to.
Why not be open to it? You’re probably tired of the sucky alternative of having zero self-respect and being the biggest hater and troll when it comes to yourself.
So, channel Nike and “just do it” when it comes to being willing to respect yourself.
Two: Break up with the negative spiral of bad self-esteem you’ve had going on.
It’s like breaking up with a toxic ex; it won’t be easy, it won’t be done in one shot, and no matter what, you have to stay strong and don’t go back there! Just like breakup sex really isn’t a great idea—it’s always great to have the last laugh on an ex, no?—it’s also unwise to go back to your own self-bashing habit, once you’ve decided to change.
Instead, be willing to fall in love with little ol’ you for a change. Do it in a healthy way, of course. What does this look like? On to the next step….
Three: Be able to identify your rights, needs and desires.
To respect yourself, you must respect those items, big-time. They are non-negotiable. If you haven’t fleshed these out in awhile (or ever), then put some time aside to reflect on them. Then be sure to write them down or type them up, to make them solid, concrete and more anchored to reality, instead of intangible thoughts floating through your brain.
Four: Be willing to have some fun, no matter where you are or what you’re doing.
Sometimes this is easier than others, admittedly. But if you try hard enough to focus on the positive instead of the negative, you might be able to find a redeeming feature about anything you’re involved with. Respect yourself enough to only be involved in things that are in alignment with your WHY and your S.M.A.A.R.T. goals.
You’re carrying yourself around 24/7; be committed to enjoying the trip, either automatically or by changing things up until you do. Take care of yourself the way you would another loved one.
Five: Own your own beauty.
Nobody is Beyonce, but seriously, even Beyonce isn’t Beyonce without a veritable village getting her through her days. Give yourself a break! Find at least one thing you like about yourself and start from there. Give every last feature credit, from your incredible blue eyes to your cute dimples to your megawatt smile.
In fact, challenge yourself to find something else beautiful about yourself at least once a day, moving forward. The more used to doing it you get, the easier it becomes to respect yourself, because you’ll find more evidence that you’re worthy as a human being.
Six: Befriend your inner bitch.
You know how ready you’d be to rip someone’s face off if they ever dared to mess with your child, your bestie or some other loved one? Well, channel that chick and put her to work for yourself! You deserve it! Respect yourself enough to protect yourself.
Bottom line?
Get excited about yourself and the possibilities of going through the rest of your life with someone as neat as yourself. Something great will be more likely to come your way if you’re not blocking your blessings—even your internal ones! When you respect yourself, that’s never an issue!
Enjoy this turbo-boost for your self-respect/self-esteem: the book, Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling, available on Amazon.
