Published on Huffington Post
What does it mean to respect yourself and those around you? Respecting yourself is a vital part on the mission of loving who you are. You are beautiful and deserved to be loved and respected by you because you are unique. The word respect as a verb is defined as “to show regard or consideration for” (Dictionary). So are you truly showing regard and consideration for yourself and those around you with your actions and thoughts.
You might be asking yourself how do you learn to respect yourself or how do you treat yourself and others with respect. Respect is something you need to automatically give to yourself, despite the image you see when you look in the mirror or the thoughts that fly through your brain. You have to believe and genuinely know that you deserve the respect given to you and convey that through your actions.
I am sure you have heard this statement before time and time again, “treat others the way you want to be treated”. That statement is true with respect as well, if you respect others then you will be able to respect yourself. Treating others with respectful is treating people kindly and with the dignity they deserve and allowing them to embrace who they are without judging them. It may sound like a challenge to treat people, even the people who you aren’t particular found of with kindness, dignity and consideration. Remember kindness stems from inside each and every one of us and our internal kindness is capable of doing amazing things to help yourself as well as those around you.
Do not ever sell yourself short because you are fully capable of being able to treat others with respect. We need to become more aware of how we treat people in order to ensure we are giving each person the respect they are entitled to as fellow human beings.
Your actions and words are a representation of yourself. Let’s face it, you are your own harshest critic. You will pass the hardest judgment on yourself. You are not always able to admire the beauty that others see in you. It can be hard to live authentically at any age, especially during our teen years when there is so much pressure to fit in and conform.
It can be easy to act irrationally and make mistakes or act in a way that disrespects yourself at times. Learning to respect others is going to help you respect yourself and you will be able to treat yourself and others with dignity and consideration that is going to put you one step closer to learning to fully love yourself.
By showing respect to others around you, you are going to be able to start practicing and learning to fully respect yourself. Can you confidently say that you treat yourself kindly and with the dignity you deserve? Are you to embracing your authentic self and showcasing your inner beauty?