6 Ways to Love Yourself...NOW!

Self-love is one of the most important things in the world. If we don't love ourselves, how can we love others? 
If you want to love yourself more, ask yourself:

1.What does loving myself get me?

2. What doesn't loving myself get me?

3. What does loving myself not get me?

4. What does not loving myself not get me?

These questions will all give you different answers, so please, ask these questions and answer them truthfully. You may surprise yourself. 

OK, so starting NOW here are 10 ways you can start loving yourself more. (you know you want to!) 

1. Quit seeking approval from outside sources & trust yourself- you may find, that as it was with me, when you are seeking approval from others, you aren't at your happiest. I look at it this way now: If it makes me happy, then that's a good thing. My approval is all I need. People may express their opinions when I tell them what I want to do, that's fine. They may not agree. That's also fine. I just don't let it change my mind. It all begins inside. Trusting yourself is part of loving yourself, so trust yourself - you know what you're doing! 

2. Know you are whole and always have been. This means you aren't broken and you don't need fixing. If you are angry at yourself for things you may have done or not done this will only hold you back. Forgive yourself and know that you did the best you could at the time with what you had. I used to think that all my mistakes would define me. Now I understand that my mistakes made me who I am today. Thank your mistakes and life lessons, learn from them, forgive yourself and anyone else you need to and live in the moment NOW. 

3. Decide to love yourself - This means you decide to cut off any other possibility other than to love yourself. How easy is this one! Look yourself in the mirror and tell yourself how you make a difference, you are loved, you are a wonderful person. Make self-love mantra's that you read every day to yourself. Out loud. Smile at yourself. Make yourself laugh. You attract who you are, so love yourself and watch the love in your life grow! 

4. Let your inner child out to play - Skip, because no one can skip angry! Paint, roll around on the grass, jump, play hop scotch. Whatever you enjoyed doing as a child, do now. Did you like face painting? Singing? Playing Eye-Spy? whatever it was, bring it back into your life. Begin to play and feel carefree. The joy will come flooding back. 

5. Acknowledge your inner critic - I used to listen to my inner critic and it held me back with important decisions I had to make. I now thank my inner critic, as I know it is just trying to keep me safe from something that may have once scared me or been new to me, but isn't the case now. That inner critic may have served me in the past but it's no longer needed. Simple. 

6. Re-frame any negative self-talk - Example "I'll never be able to do this..." turns into "I may not be able to do this yet, but in time I will." or "I don't like XYZ" can turn into "I'm curious about XYZ and how I feel about it." Give yourself emotional mastery of your self-talk and make your language empower you and nurture you. 

Self-love needs to be a conscious thing. Practice these tips every day and anything else that makes you happy. Start a positive ripple effect in your life now, with self-love and notice the amazing changes that begin to happen, not just to you but in your family and those around you.