Hello Gorgeous! I say it all the time but you deserve to be loved not only by those around you but by the most important person in your life- YOU! As a boudoir photographer I often talk about boudoir photography in the context of self love. What does this mean exactly? Well, it really means just what you think it means, loving yourself! Feeling love for yourself creates happiness within which is an incredible feeling. Self love is about being happy with where you are while pursuing where you want to go. It’s about accepting yourself, flaws and all!
As someone that works closely with women I have heard it all. I have heard stories of bad relationships, issues with health like breast cancer, weight losses and gains, pretty much everything! However, the overall theme I hear most often is just the struggle to value yourself. I know doing a boudoir session can have a very positive effect on women because it shows them that they are beautiful regardless of their age or size but beauty and feeling great about yourself really starts with working on the inside. Here are 5 simple steps that you can do to achieve a greater level of self love.
- Stop Comparing Yourself To Others– There’s only one you! Focus on yourself and don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. We see a lot of images in magazines and online that enforce the message that women need to be perfect but women are all different. Embrace and love the things that make you different. This is what makes you special!
- Don’t Worry About What Others Think Of You– You are never going to be able to make everyone happy. Don’t spend any time trying to meet others expectations. Worry about living your best life and doing what’s best for you.
- Don’t Be Afraid To Make Mistakes– Nobody is perfect. The journey to self love is about learning and growing. I don’t know about you but I learn more from mistakes than anything else.
- Your Value Is Not Based On Appearance– Remember that your value is not based on your looks!- This may seem counterintuitive since many women feel good about themselves when they look good. However, your value is about you as a person and not your appearance.
- Put Yourself First-Sometimes you need to take time to care for yourself. It’s important to find time to decompress. It can be the process of just taking some free time to get away from the hustle and bustle. This doesn’t mean that you are selfish. It means that you care enough about yourself to take your mental and physical health into account. Taking care of yourself will allow you to take better care of those around you too.
There’s so many more steps we can do to improve how we feel about ourselves. The five I mentioned above are a just a basic guideline to get you focused on your self love journey. Let’s all vow to continue to work towards living our best lives with someone that will always be there for us- Ourselves!
xoxo
Kellie
