Most of us really have the tendencies to beat the S*** out of ourselves!
It amazes me that for as long as I have been doing this work and as much as I coach others to move away from beating themselves up how often I can catch myself in a state of not loving myself.
And not only am I not loving myself, I am treating myself so incredibly poorly that it would make me cringe if I saw someone treating another that way.
I am catching myself focused on the things I feel like I haven’t gotten finished or that weren’t done that well. I notice myself finding all the things I could have done better instead of really praising myself for all the things that I have done well!
How many of us set goals for ourselves and upon reaching them pick apart what we could have done better or faster or more of?
My goodness why do I not give myself a HUGE hug at the end of every day when I look at all I DID get done?
Why don’t I remind myself just how remarkable my gestures are when I perform random acts of kindness?
Why is my mind so constantly looking for where I suck when what it should be looking for is ways to treat myself right and take time to rest and relax and feel proud of all I accomplish?
Why do we not spend more time celebrating our wins and honoring the wonderful things we cultivate in our lives?
WHERE IS THE LOVE? I ask that all the time as it relates to the human race and now I am asking myself where it is for myself? And I am asking you to do the same. Please ask yourself where you are loving yourself and if you are not finding anywhere please pledge to find a way to do some lovin’ on YOU!
So I decided that I am going to have a Be Kind To Myself Day. ALL day today I am going to do nothing but give myself hugs and self praise. I am going to treat myself the way I would my child and my family and those I love the most.
Because we ALL deserve to love ourselves in that way too! Self praise does not have to be ego driven. But rather a genuine recognition of what we have done well and accomplished and for the love that we share!
I want to invite you to set a Be Kind To Myself day as well. If you have ever read Julia Cameron’s The Artist Way, she suggests taking ourselves out on artist dates. And I want us all to take ourselves out on self love dates. Pick a day and take yourself out to do something you truly love. Sit in the park doing nothing, go to see a movie you have been wanting to see, take a long drive in the car with no destination in mind and the music blasting. Pamper yourself. Take that long, hot bath, plan a spa day, take a leisurely walk in the sun.
Just do something that feels good. With no judgments on it. Allow yourself to treat yourself to a date where you are simply loving yourself by allowing yourself some unadulterated time to do something you enjoy, whatever it is! Remember, NO JUDGMENTS!
But above all, on your Be Kind To Myself Day, make a promise to yourself to be nice to yourself ALL day. No negative self talk. No searching for what didn’t get done, no beating yourself up in any way, shape or form. This of course requires that we become more aware of our own thinking processes. And the more we can become a student of our own thinking, the more we can catch these UN self serving patterns within ourselves. And the more choice we afford ourselves as to where we would be better off placing our attention.
We all ROCK! We work hard, we do nice things for people, we are creative, we put others before ourselves, we make people laugh, we teach each other, we hug, we love, we support, we take care of our friends, spouses, family members and kids and then still try telling ourselves we are not enough. And that is simply not true.
So please, commit to having a Be Kind To Myself Day very soon. And I would further invite you to journal about your experience at the end of the day. It could be the start of a real shift in the way we feel about and treat ourselves!
How are you going to spend your Be Kind To Myself Day? Would love to hear your thoughts below!
