Love Yourself First
We have created a world where everyone is expected to be heroes. We are supposed to put others first and do people favors without anything in return, even if that means hurting ourselves along the way. The intentions of this altruistic mindset are admirable, but we have taken it too far and reached an extreme. We are so afraid of being viewed as selfish that we have lost sight of our own worth as individuals.
The word selfish gets thrown around a lot and is often aimed in the direction of young adults. It is believed that we go off to college and do what we want when we want without giving anything a second thought. Your early 20s, however, are supposed to be about you. This is the time when you first start to figure out who you are as an independent person. You do not have parents telling you how to think or act anymore .You make most decisions on your own without any help or direction. You are forced to grow and discover things about yourself. It’s a very important period of self-actualization that should be respected and given a chance to fully experience.
I will tell you something that no one else will: It’s okay to be selfish. It’s okay to make sure you are taking care of your own wants and needs. Friendliness is always encouraged and you can still take care of yourself without being disrespectful to others. This is not a message to go around thinking the Earth revolves around you, but you should remember that it does not revolve around anyone else either. We put so much pressure on ourselves to please others that we forget about our own well-being. Never forget that your happiness is just as important as everyone else’s.
When it comes to relationships, whether it’s with a friend or a significant other, we tend to view the other person as more important than us and it does not always end well. You have to make sure you are doing okay. You have to be happy on your own before you can be happy with someone. You have to be confident in your own values and priorities so that you have a foundation on which to build those relationships. Most importantly, you need to have a firm grasp on your self worth. If you do not know what you deserve, then you end up accepting less. You get stuck in the cycle of giving too much, while getting too little. At the end of the day, you have to do what is best for you. Out of everyone in the world, you deserve your love the most.