When we talk about investing, we think about investing in stocks, bonds or real estate, business infrastructure and staffing. Or investing in our relationships, losing weight and personal development. What about investing in loving you? You are the linchpin for your joyful, successful, delicious life.
What does investing in loving you look like? Obviously, it’s a uniquely individual experience and your choice what you do (or don’t do).
Step 1: Talk nicely to yourself. I notice when I am judging myself harshly, I tend to literally call myself names. Have you ever done that? Catch yourself and stop. It will change your life.
Masaru Emoto did famous experiments photographing water with positive/negative words and environments. He discovered that negative words fractured the crystalline structure of the water and made it ugly. A human body is composed of approximately 65% water and, in infants, it’s about 75%. By that measure, every nasty word you say OR hear from another and buy into, affects you not only psychologically but also 65% of your physical body.
Step 2: Every opinion is not golden. Be mindful of whose opinions you listen to or you will ride a rollercoaster of other people’s thoughts and ideas (not your own). Don’t ignore what people you trust say about you but you are the final arbiter. Run everything through your truth of who you are and accept or decline, grounded in your true knowing. You have a right to say “No,” that’s not for me, that opinion, that course of action, that peer-driven choice, that friend or lover. Until you say “Yes,” that opinion of yours or theirs does not belong to you. Don’t accept anything you don’t want manifesting into your life. That is one of the keys to vitality and joy.
Step 3: Protect yourself from toxic people. You will know who they are by tracking your own energy. Does being with a particular person fuel you or deplete you? This requires checking in with your body first because your mind is not always reliable. Your mind might say something like, “But it’s a great business deal!” If your skin cringes away from the person, trust it.
Today, I invite you to invest in loving yourself? What is your first act of love going to be?
Terrific steps thank you for sharing. I have begun investing in loving myself by washing my face at night, taking pride in my appearance again, and working out.
MY first act of love is to set boundaries and watch for toxic people.
That’s wonderful, LisaRenee! Recognize that your energy may surge and wane so honor your need for more action or more rest. Unfortunately, grief is not a steady upward trajectory. Be gentle with yourself. And congratulations for investing in loving YOU!