5 Ways to Practice Self-Love this Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s Day! Whether you have a significant other or not, you will definitely have a Valentine this year. How can I guarantee that? It’s simple. Let yourself be your Valentine this year. Make it a priority to put energy into the relationship you have with yourself. I strongly believe that when you love yourself and treat yourself with respect, you’ll be able to attract a similar type of relationship from others. 

In the words of Bieber, “Oh, baby, you should go and love yourself.”

Self-love is a term that is really trendy right now. It seems like everyone is talking about it, but some people don’t know what it means. So what is self-love? It’s “a regard for one’s own well-being and happiness (chiefly considered as a desirable rather than narcissistic characteristic).”

Doesn’t that sound awesome? My challenge for you this entire month is to keep self-love top of mind and think about ways that you can share positive energy and give back to yourself. 

Keep reading for five steps you can take today to increase the self-love in your life. Please leave me a comment at the end of this post letting me know you practice self-love on a daily basis. 

1. No more comparisons

Let’s be honest, the Internet is a dangerous place. We’ve all secretly envied at least one thing about someone else’s life on Instagram and compared it to our own. {I can’t be the only one!} Maybe it’s Kendall Jenner’s perfect skin, Chrissy Teigen’s relationship, or Arianna Huffington’s career. It’s important to remember that social media is so crafted. People only share what they want you to see. No one has perfect skin, a perfect relationship, or a perfect career. Be grateful for what you do have and focus on the positives. 

2. Nurture your dreams

It might not seem like it, but going after your dreams is such a great way to practice self-love. Even if your dreams don’t seem attainable right now, continue to work towards them. Make a bucket list or 101 in 1001 list, and place it somewhere you look at often. If you find it difficult to reach your goals, let someone else know about them. That way you can be held accountable! 

3. See mistakes as valuable lessons

Everything happens for a reason, so love yourself for your mistakes. See them as valuable lessons and grow from them. It’s as simple as that. You can’t drive a car by looking in the rear view mirror, so keep your eye on the prize and keep moving ahead. 

4. Do something for you

It’s probably easy for you to give back to others. That could be cooking dinner for your husband, running errands for your grandmother, or providing support for your best friend. While those things are important, it’s also important to do something nice for yourself. I like to take time in the mornings to practice yoga, have a cup of coffee and catch up on social media. Maybe you like to get a massage on the weekends or take a boxing class. Whatever it is, make sure you treat yourself! 

5. Set boundaries

In order for you to increase your self-love, you have to create boundaries. This can be physical boundaries with people, places and experiences that make you feel less than amazing. But, it can also mean setting boundaries around your work and personal life. Specifically for me, I’m constantly figuring out new ways to create balance and boundaries between my full-time job, blogging, freelancing gigs, and my personal life. With so much going on, prioritizing my time is critical. Some ways I’m setting boundaries is not answering emails first thing in the morning, keeping my laptop out of our bedroom, and scheduling time on the weekends to meet up with friends. Sure, there are nights when I have to work on my laptop late at night, but I’m trying my best to keep that to a minimum. 

I hope you have a wonderful, love-filled Valentine’s Day!

Thank you for reading my post.
Don’t forget to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.