Be kind to yourself June 6, 2016 – Posted in: Confidence – Tags: happiness, kindness, Positive psychology
BKTY
As you know I’m writing about kindness this month, as I believe it’s a crucial element in cultivating a confident, authentic life. I totally and emphatically believe that the kinder we are to others the better we feel about ourselves.
But, this needs to start at home, with ourselves.
I had to text her back and ask what she meant.
“Be Kind To Yourself,” came the reply. I spent the next several years trying to work out how this looks in practice and this is what I’ve learned.Being kind to myself means that I catch those critical, negative, destructive thoughts in my mind and do business with them. I cool them with the love and wisdom I find in my guts (which is where I believe I connect to some form of higher consciousness).Being kind to myself means I feed myself well, take enough rest, do exercise I enjoy and generally take care of my body. Yesterday, after feeling poorly all week with a heavy cold, I took myself back to bed for the morning and slept like a baby. I awoke feeling so much better. I was kind to myself and my body responded!
Being kind to myself means I do my best each day but try to leave the results alone. I don’t stress about the outcome any more – just do the next right thing each day.
Being kind to myself means I’m no longer a perfectionist (most of the time…) I aim for progress today, not perfection. Perfection is a myth of the ego-mind anyway.
Finally, being kind to myself means I let go of mistakes I’ve made in the past but try to keep hold of the lessons I’ve learnt. I stay grounded in Life and trust that It knows what It’s doing.
Being Kind To Yourself takes practice, especially if you’re used to driving yourself hard and criticising your every move. But, being kind to yourself is, of course, the best way to learn how to be genuinely kind to others.
Start small with little acts of self kindness and watch your confidence climb…