Why Self-Love Should Be the Most Important Part of Our Day-to-day Routine

I know, you’ve read the articles and seen the damning headlines, you’ve most likely even felt the effects of millennials being the most anxious generation. There’s so much going on in our heads; so many expectations, whether these are ones we set ourselves or ones others inadvertently set for us. We want to be someone, do something and see everywhere – we want to live our best lives; a life worth talking about.

These elevated expectations are causing us a whole world of stress and if we want to live our best lives, then we need to look after ourselves. After all, we are the most important asset we own. It is no surprise then that with this commitment to living our best lives, and this desire not to be overcome by it, discussions of self-love are at an all-time high.

The term itself, unfortunately, is a little bit controversial and is often seen as a moral flaw and (ridiculously) seen as being selfish. But what part of taking care of yourself and putting yourself first, is selfish? After all, if you don’t, who will?

It took me a while to embrace self-love, I often felt like it was too self-indulgent taking time for myself when there were a thousand other things I should be doing. But then, the inevitable happened and I found myself having a breakdown. I was exhausted and my body completely shut down. We’ve all been there, maybe we haven’t read the signs, or perhaps deep down we know they are there but we play ignorant…We get sick the second we slow down, we are running a thousand miles an hour and keep sleeping through our alarms because our bodies need sleep. Whatever it looks like to you, think about it. Do you push yourself beyond breaking point? Why? What are you trying to prove?

This is where self-love comes in, and where we need to remember that it is not self-indulgent, it is not selfish, it is taking care of yourself the same way you would take Vitamins in the winter and eat your vegetables to get essential nutrients.

Here at The Good List, we are self-proclaimed self-love obsessives (I went from 0 to 100 real quick.) As we all should be! So, here are our favourite ways to invest a little time into ourselves.

1. Ultimate Self-Love Routine

The best way to practise self-love is to create a routine. Your body and mind will recognise this routine and you will start to unwind. If all else fails, make sure you do this on a Sunday as much as possible, it’s the perfect day to invest in a little self-love. I’m not sure what it is about it, maybe it’s the fact it’s the beginning of a new week, but we’ve all heard the saying – a Sunday well spent brings a week of content. And it’s true (that and it’s the time where you realise the weekend is over and you need a little love!)

If you are a self-love virgin try our tried-and-tested Self-love Routine.

1x Hot everything shower (or bath). You know, the one girls do when they exfoliate, shave, wash their hair and sing Pocket Full of Sunshine on repeat and emerge like a new, my-life-is-together woman. (Seriously though, I have a few songs I listen to on repeat when I am having a relaxing shower and they get my mind into relaxation mood soooo quick!)
1x Facemask
1x Candle
1x Hot drink, Peppermint tea is our choice
1x Good book / movie / tv show
A pinch of good leisurewear

Combine and enjoy.

FYI, this is the perfect self-love routine for every day, and for optimal self-love, you should do this (or parts of it) multiple times a week.

2. Workout for your Mind.

No, I don’t mean Sudoku…We know that exercise has amazing benefits for our mind and body, but how often do you put on your sneakers and go for a lush, long walk? Find a park or river nearby, turn the music up and walk. Not because you have somewhere to be and not because you ‘need to work out’, but because you want to move. Trust us, after 15-minutes of aimless walking, you’ll start to feel refreshed. Follow this by a long stretch – again, when was the last time you stretched? And when your gym instructor shouted out a few stretches at you to hold for 10-seconds, yeah, that doesn’t count. Find some good stretch videos on Instagram or YouTube and relax. Our faves are below.

3. Make a Cuppa

If you are pressed for time, like all of us are, that doesn’t mean you can’t take a little time for self-love. Boil the jug, and while you do that rather than rush off and do something else … stand there, and wait for it to boil. Slowly move to get the tea bag and your mug rather than running a thousand miles a second. Take time to slow down. Have your cuppa – tea or coffee – and enjoy it, take every sip slowly, savour the taste. Then, when you must, move on.

4. Love Yourself

Self-love is about having regard for your own happiness. And while a big part of this is taking care of yourself, it is also about loving yourself and who you are. It is about learning to listen to your inner voice – and telling it when to shut up should it ever start talking shit. You need to stop seeing your weaknesses as well, weaknesses, and see them as strengths. Like, I’m incredibly stubborn but I like to see this as passionate…This is something I learnt for Sarah Knight’s wonderful book You Do You, which I 10/10 recommend if you need a little reminder to love yourself (and take care of yourself!)

5. Take Note

If you want to really excel at self-love, download an app like Uplifter or Happyfeed and use it to take note of the great things that happened in your life. So much happens that we forget about, so take note of this and days where you feel a little … meh, look back on these reminders.

Remember, this is not self-indulgent – it’s a necessity! And sometimes (for us more often than we care to admit) it takes priority over other things because we know how to look after ourselves. That and we are part of Generation Flake, and you should be too.