I meant to post this a while ago, but I didn’t feel it was perfect and never had a chance to finish it- so here we are now!

I’ve always thought of myself as a very positive, optimistic person; however, I’ve realized that I can have some negative talk during the day. Recognizing this is the first step, then acting on it and making changes is the second step. Although I looked intrinsically to find the answers of new project, I referred to the world wide web to reinforce my ideas for an easy guide to share with you all. ¡Disfrútala!

The self-love checklist:

1. You only surround yourself with people who truly care about you, support you, and want what’s best for you. You let the healthy relationships grow and filter out the toxic ones.

2. You take care of yourself—whether that means meditating on a daily basis, eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, or all of the above. Putting yourself and your health first is a sign that you value who you are.

3. You stopped comparing yourself to other people. While it’s great what they’re doing, it has nothing to do with you and what you’re capable of. In the end, it’s about focusing on yourself and where you are/want to be.

4. Expressing yourself is important to you and you’re not ashamed of what you want or what you don’t want. Your opinion is important, and you’re not worried about what other think.

5. Those negative voices in your head that are discouraging and demeaning have turned into positive affirmations. No more picking yourself apart. You believe you are good enough and everything will be okay.

6. You go after what you want. You’re motivated to pursue your dreams, because they’re a huge part of who you are, and you have the inner trust and confidence to go after what you want.

7. You’re comfortable spending one-one-one time with yourself and you actually value this quality time. Recharging is essential for everyone and instead of feeling guilty for it, you embrace it because it’s necessary.

8. You’re grateful. Practicing gratitude is a daily part of life. You know you’re not owed anything and feel blessed for what you do have.

9. You’re happy when others achieve things, because you know you’re on your own path and will find a different, yet still meaningful form of success. You love yourself fully, so you’re happy to see others succeed.

10. You know great things will happen to you because you put positive energy out there into the world and are open to different experiences. If you put good things out into the world, good things will make their way to you.

Received from: https://my.happify.com/hd/10-signs-you-really-love-yourself/

This is an interesting time to come back to this article because I started becoming aware of this negative self talk around 6 weeks into my time in Spain, and I’ve really seen a difference in how my self-image, overall attitude, & interactions with others have changed after 5 months. I have so much more love and light to spread now that I don’t have to keep some for myself! Some people even get genuinely confused with how generous I am and how little I let other people’s negative comments or actions impact me. A lot can change when you start to accept, not judge, and unapologetically BE yourself.

After almost 6 months in Spain so far, I’ve had to say goodbye to all my friends I made this past semester- and one continuous compliment my new friends gave me was how I am unapologetically myself, I don’t care what others think of me, and how they admire my bold personality and unstoppable determination. Of course I take this with a grain of salt but I made sure to thank every one of my friends for accepting me and not just writing me off as some crazy girl who does whatever she wants! The moment you label someone and put them in a box is the moment you put yourself in a box and set your own limitations. Everything is fluid and to think anything different is completely backward and unenlightened. Read some of my next posts to see what else I’ve learned from my time in Spain! ❤

…In regards to the title… if you haven’t figured it out yet I’m not actually in love with anyone besides myself- I’ve got too much stuff to do. (You’re welcome, Dad.)