The Power of Self Acceptance

It’s a big world out there. There are a lot of reasons to be happy, so many adventures to enjoy, and a lot of new things to discover. And I think the most important thing that is holding us back is the fact that we have not yet fully accepted ourselves. Yes, even though we have finally accepted ourselves, from time to time, we still feel unhappy; we will still feel fear and loneliness. But in learning to accept ourselves, we will be able to brush it off easily.

“Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with it can there be recovery.” –J.K. Rowling

            Understand that you are a human. Recognize that you have certain strengths and weaknesses. You have your own quirks. You make mistakes. You have your good side and bad side. Self acceptance is accepting and loving all of those things that make you who you are. Do not try to deny the things that you do not like about yourself as we may have certain trait in general, but no one will be exactly the same. It’s what makes us unique. It’s what makes each and every one of us so special.

However, accepting oneself is definitely not an excuse for not improving. In fact, it should help you achieve more knowing who you are, what you want and where you want to be. It’s just that you do not have to criticize yourself for every mistake you’ve made. You have to forgive yourself for your mistakes, learn from it, strategize, allow yourself to think of a way to solve it and move forward. You have your strengths; use it to achieve your goals. You have your weaknesses; you may try to improve it.

“Do not compare yourself to others, you are insulting yourself.” –Taylor Swift

            One of the reasons why it is so hard to accept ourselves is because we compare ourselves to other people. “How come she has that long beautiful hair and I don’t?” How come she has a car and I don’t?” and the list goes on.  If you keep on looking at other people’s lives, you will spend the rest of your life being miserable. First and foremost, not everything that you see in your friend’s Facebook account or any other social media shows their entire life story. Definitely, they have their own ups and downs, just like you, but most people only show the “highlighted” part of their story. Second, you do not have to keep on checking your social media every minute especially if you will just end up being a sour grape. Open your social media only if you want some catching up with friends. And last, turn that envy into something positive. Learn to celebrate other people’s success. Use them as an inspiration. Do some researches and make a plan. Know the things you are good at and use it as a leverage to achieve your goal.

            Know that by not accepting yourself, you are depriving yourself with these: Happiness, Personal growth, Peace, and Self Esteem.