How Does Self-appreciation Look?

This was my mission today. What does self-appreciation look like, and how can I practice it throughout the day? I was surprised because it came about in unexpected ways today.

Today I woke up and caught myself going into a form of self-sabotage, where I was using past memories to define myself by one of my toughest moments in my life. When I say 'define myself' I mean in a very harsh, critical and judgmental way. I used to think that was a good way to be to get one's ass in gear, but I learned the hard way that it really just makes everything so much harder.

So, today I decided to live a little self-appreciation, and within that, gratitude. I shared a video in my last post that also had me consider the word 'care', as in, self-care, to live along with self-appreciation and gratitude. So, instead of kicking myself when I was down today, I looked at how I could appreciate and care for myself.

For me, what self-appreciation looked like today was voicing myself on points where I had something to say. Instead of shying away or wanting to say something but then not saying it due to fear of causing conflict or getting backlash, I spoke. I spoke knowing that no matter what happens, I would practice gratitude, as in a great attitude, and take the lesson from it.

So today my self-appreciation was a bit scary, I spoke up, and I walked myself through the backlash, and although it didn't feel great at the time, I was able to remain calm and then look at how things played out, and take a lesson from it. For this, I was able to express self-appreciation. This is because I know that I saw what I was doing, I did it in awareness, and I learned how to be better in the future when in a similar situation.

So when a similar situation comes up again, I can appreciate the fact that I took the steps to build myself through understanding, and that I will then be better prepared to confront the situation. Kind of like an investment into myself where - yes it is a little painful at first, but in the long run, it pays out.