Father¡¯s Day is continually defined by the gifts, activities and other myriad ways we choose to celebrate our dads.
In 2019, lunch dates, expensive gifts or even a surprise breakfast in bed for dad is all okay but, in all honesty, a little pass¨¦. Why don¡¯t we change the narrative this year?
Give your dad a gift that keeps on giving day in and day out. A gift that will make your dad feel proud about how he has raised you. A gift that will provide him immense happiness. Practicing self-love and being absolutely in love with your flaws, your hair, your face, your personality and everything else that makes you you is the single best gift you can give your dad! ?
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One of the hardest things to learn is how to love yourself. It¡¯s no easy feat but it's exactly what your parents would want you to do. Most of us spend each and everyday picking away at the imperfections we see in ourselves. This constant criticism directed at yourself tends to change your attitude, your mood and your relationships. But not anymore. We are calling an intervention. This self-hatred needs to stop, starting this Father¡¯s Day.
Loving yourself comes from having a healthy self-esteem and self-confidence. And just like with everything in life, these things come with practice. In order to have a consistently positive relationship with yourself, try adopting these 5 habits that will help encourage all that due self-love.
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The aim is to take some time out for yourself each day to do something just for you. This doesn¡¯t have to mean extravagant spa appointments or massages. Instead, reading a chapter of your favorite?book, making yourself a cup of tea and just sitting beside your favorite?window or just simply lying down on the bed with your lights shut and mobile phone on silent for 15 minutes is self-care too. Whatever you want to do, that is nourishing for your mind, body and soul, then just do it.
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The single biggest deterrent to self-love is holding onto regrets, mistakes or any shame from the past. You need to find a way to forgive yourself for whatever went wrong in the past while committing to improving your behavior in the present. Try living more closely according to your own values- that will be a huge step towards self-care and over time you¡¯ll notice that there are no past mistakes or shame to hold onto.
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Self- love is a constant work in progress which means there are going to be days that will make it harder to love yourself. That¡¯s where having a mantra is a wise thing. A mantra will help you replace any negative thoughts you might have about yourself with something more positive. It doesn¡¯t have to be something extreme like, ¡°I am super hot!¡±. Your mantra should be something that feels truer to your life at the moment. We recommend choosing one with the help of your dad, his insight will be supremely valuable.
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If you notice that you are constantly comparing yourself to others, you need to zero in on these thoughts. This can successfully happen when you make yourself realise?one thing: that a lot of people will have more than you, may look different or are just somehow better BUT that doesn¡¯t mean you are any. Life becomes a lot easier when you love what you have because nothing is more attractive than someone who is comfortable in their skin.
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Instead of fearing being alone, self-love will transform you to be extremely selfish for your alone time and that¡¯s exactly where you want to be. Please don¡¯t think spending time on your phone all alone counts as alone time. It doesn¡¯t. Use time just by yourself to learn about new things, challenge your thoughts or get some exercise in!
Ultimately, you and only you are responsible for your fate. Life is no fun if you spend it hating yourself; and in turn you are hurting your father too because no parent raises a child only to see them hate themselves. The more you love yourself, the happier you will feel, and the more motivated you will be to accomplish what you want in life.
When you love yourself, you take pride in who you are- an identity provided to you by your father. Too many people place the needs of others before their own, but in order to respect others, you need to meet your own needs first. How can you truly learn to appreciate others if you can¡¯t even appreciate yourself? This is fundamental to personal growth and now fundamental to being a good child too.