What is being happy with yourself?
Being happy with yourself means being at peace with who you are, what you are, and where you are. Everyone has a different journey of life that changes its course along the way. Being content with your journey is the starting point of being happy with yourself. Instead of focusing on what others have and what you don’t, start focusing on what you have and what is good about you. You don’t need a perfect body, a high-paying job, or fame to be happy. It doesn’t mean living a perfect life. It simply means you have decided to look beyond imperfections.
Why being happy with yourself is important
According to Mary Lou Retton,
If you stay positive, good things and good people will be drawn to you.
Happiness is contagious, it spreads like fire in the bush. No one likes to correspond with a person having a constant frown on his forehead. It acts like a magnet attracting positivity and goodness towards your way. Being happy with yourself is the first step to achieving higher goals. When you are happy with yourself, your self-confidence boosts to a level that you no longer stumble when life becomes hard. You are more likely to learning new things, growing and accomplishing your goals as well as feeling better along the way.
How can I be happier? 11 ways to be happy with yourself
Now that we have talked about why being happy with yourself is important let’s take a look at 11 ways to achieve happiness in life. After all, you do spend quite a bit of time with yourself, and learning to enjoy that time can transform your life. Some of them might not make sense to you while others might be what you were really in search of. Try them, add to them, and shape them as they suit you and your personality.
1. Prioritize yourself
As clichéd as it might sound but you heard that right. You can only be happy with yourself once you prioritize yourself. Giving value to yourself will prompt others to value you even more. The more you value yourself, the more you build confidence. The more you nurture yourself, the more you have to give to others. The moment you decide to show mercy and compassion to yourself is the moment you look past your imperfections. It motivates you to take better care of yourself and not let people treat you poorly. Be compassionate and considerate towards yourself like you would be to a friend. Stay away from any negativity and begin with the habit of eliminating toxicity from your life. Whether in the form of toxic thoughts or toxic people you sure don’t want to surround yourself with that! You need to learn to deal with toxic people.
2. Stop comparing yourself with others
You might think it is easier said than done. But, to be happy with yourself you need to be content with who you are. If you continuously indulge in the habit of comparing your lives with others you can’t be truly happy. There are always going to be people doing better than you but the point is to make peace with it. They might not be having something which you are blessed with. Instead of comparing yourself with others start learning and growing along the way. Don’t strive to be like someone else. You don’t know what their struggles are and whether they are truly happy as they seem to be or not. That’s how you can get back to being yourself.
3. Forgive yourself to not lose your personality
You might have heard the phrase that your greatest enemy can often be yourself! Needless to say that it’s a widespread issue in our society. We expect ourselves to outperform our expectations and when we don’t we hate ourselves. Forgiving yourself because you made a mistake can reduce the stress, anxiety, and burden off your head. Forgive yourself if you did not accomplish your goals and if you behave rudely with others. Forgive yourself if your plans didn’t go the way you planned. We are humans and we are bound to making mistakes. So stop panicking over the things you don’t have control over. Instead, try and be better next time. There are always second chances and you can always stand up after falling. Learn to forgive and forget and focus on the solutions instead. Always say positive things about yourself while hoping and growing towards a better YOU.
4. Give yourself a break –
If you are working overtime, get rid of that habit. It is dangerous to work too much. Workplace stress can take a toll on your mental and physical health. If your job makes you feel stressed it is bad for you. Grinding in that monotonous routine without taking a break can increase the risk of heart diseases. So, what can you do about it? Taking consistent breaks after every 90 minutes can help in releasing the stress. Practicing this made me truly happy with myself. Listen to your body when it asks for it. Visit some scenic places once in a while to shake things up. Learn to appreciate it. Spend time with nature. According to research 30 minutes or more spent in nature can improve symptoms of depression and lower blood pressure.
5. Appreciate yourself
Recognizing what you love about yourself and appreciating that will make you comfortable in your skin. Embrace yourself, embrace your flaws, and look beyond them. There is so much to do than just sitting there and listening to your inner critic. Make a list of at least 10 things that you love about yourself whether it be your free spirit, your contagious smile, or the way you work. Come to terms with your flaws. Instead of obsessing over them, figure out how you can improve yourself in that regard. Everyone has flaws and weaknesses but continuously thinking about them will eat your happiness. To be happy with yourself you need to appreciate what makes you unique, not everyone can do that but you can!
6. Cherish your relationships
Connections and belongings are an essential part of our lives. Humans are wired for it and there is sufficient evidence to prove that. Connections provide value to our lives. It gives us a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment. Having someone to turn to at your lowest is the most comforting feeling ever. As ultimately human experience is about connecting with other people. Whether it’s family, friends, or marriage people need strong social connections for a happy and healthy life. According to research, people having deep relationships tend to live longer and happier despite being less fortunate. Take a genuine interest in the life of people that matter the most to you. When we are compassionate and caring towards others we end up being happier ourselves. So, no matter what carve out time for your family and friends if you want to be happy with yourself!
7. Spend time with yourself
Yeah, that may sound self-evident but most people skip it by chasing their dreams and fulfilling their ambitions. If you want to be happier you begin by being good to yourself. That means listening to your inner voice, consoling your soul, and never letting yourself dive down the path of desperation. Regardless of how you feel about being alone, building a healthy relationship with yourself is a worthy investment. Talk to yourself like you would to a friend, treat yourself with premium products, or take yourself on a date. Commit to doing one nice thing for yourself every day whether it be dancing like no one’s watching or just standing in front of the mirror smiling. Be happy with yourself by letting your mind wander and slap a label on your negative thoughts the next time your inner critic comes to call.
8. Make plans for the future
Do you like daydreaming? Well, that’s exactly what you need to but, realistically! There’s sufficient research to prove that having plans for tomorrow helps you to be more productive and hopeful today. Envision where you would want to be in the next 5 or 10 years both personally and professionally. Jot that down and take one step at a time. It might be difficult to nail down a plan initially, but it’s better to take that first step than regretting it later. Writing down your goals would help you be on track to achieving them. Of course, goals may change along the way and they often do but you just have to tweak your plan accordingly. Once you figure out what your future looks like you would be more passionate about accomplishing them. Once you start fulfilling your dreams you’d be more confident to make life happy.
9. Never lose hope in yourself
This is easier said than done, but there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. Life is a test as we know it and tests are not easy at all. It has its stressors and you need to strengthen your coping skills. Being hopeful however terrible the situation might be will help you in never losing your mind. With hope, you know that eventually, everything will fall in place. Hope is the antidote to despair. It helps you focus on the positive aspects of your life and be happy with yourself. Not everything you do will go according to the plan. There will be setbacks and life will become hard. Optimism and hope help us be on track. The next time Life throws you lemons be quick to make lemonade. After all, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!
10. Volunteer
When we help others we end up feeling happier ourselves. We all do better when we have a community we feel connected to. Find ways in which you can help others. That way you can feel good within yourself without losing your self-esteem. Go out of your comfort zone every once in a while and experience the pleasure of being at service to others. Contribute to the surroundings. It doesn’t have to be big contributions but a small gesture like smiling or greeting a random person may also help you feel good. Volunteer for the causes you believe in. Join the organizations which have the same aspirations as you. You can always move out if something doesn’t work for you. Volunteering can give you a deep sense of fulfillment and help you be happy with yourself.
11. Never be afraid to ask for help
However hard you may try, if it doesn’t soothe and calm you, you shouldn’t shy away from asking for help. There are times when life is completely unpredictable and hard to understand. Times, when all these practices and gratitude lists in the world won’t help in getting, rid of sadness and loneliness. If you are overly stressed and nothing seems to work you should ask for help. Consider going to a therapist if you feel symptoms of anxiety and depression. There’s always a way out, a solution to a problem. But, keeping it inside yourself till you hit a crisis point is torturous. Seek out medication if nothing else in the world works out for you. If you consider yourself worthy enough of love and happiness only then you can make life happy.
What to do if you are losing you mind?
So, what if you tried all these things and you still aren’t happy with yourself? Never stop believing yourself! You are worthy of all the blessings and you’ve achieved so much to celebrate. The moment you overly criticize yourself is the moment you start doubting your worth. Self-realization is important but self-judgment is not. The bottom line is to take care of yourself as you would of your loved ones. If you want to promote positivity in your life be sure to remove all the negative influences first. Still, if nothing is working for you and you feel like losing your mind, you must go to the therapist.
