5 Reasons To Put Yourself First
By Krailyn Guymon
Why should I put myself first?
Putting yourself first gives you positive opportunities to live a better life. When you think of the life you want to live, are you living it? If not, then it’s time to start! There are so many resources out there to help you create the best life for yourself. In doing so, you’ll find yourself happier, more confident, healthier, and more self-reliant. It’s important to take a period of time in your life where you’re able to stand alone to figure out who you are and what values are important to you. With that being said, here are 5 reasons you should put yourself first.
1. Happiness
Being happy is something everyone tries to do. It can be scary to put yourself first because you don’t want people to think badly of you. But, when did we decide it was bad to put ourselves first? Being able to be happy on your own, I think, is the biggest secret people who are truly happy are hiding.
2. Confidence
Confidence comes from the feelings of acceptance and welcoming from other people. But what if you were able to feel confident on your own and in your own skin? You would be unstoppable. Start by taking compliments from yourself and others. Stop dimensionalizing your beauty, inside and out. Work on positive self talk and how you can boost yourself up everyday.
3. What You Want In Life
Taking time for yourself and making sure you are happy and confident can help you realize what you want for your future. A lot of people choose to get out of their comfort zone. Things like relationships or going away to college to be able to find who they are and who they want to be.
4. Healthier Living
Everyone always talks about living healthier lives. In America, it is clear that junk food and artificial flavors sell for less than whole foods and proper fuel for your body. This definitely ties into putting yourself first. Putting yourself first helps promote a healthier mindset, which can help make the necessary shift to properly provide for yourself.
5. Becoming Self Dependent
In many cases, individuals are dependent on someone else. Whether that be their family, significant other, or best friend, we all have someone we rely on heavily and trust the most. Although it is important to have people like that, it is also important to learn how to rely on yourself for the help you need.
So how should you start to work on yourself?
We all know that putting yourself first isn’t always easy, it comes with the feeling of being “selfish”. It’s important to be selfish in certain ways so that you can better yourself. Sometimes, it can be hard to know how to put yourself first. Because of that, here are a few ways to help you start putting yourself first.
Limit time on social media
Social media can be a great thing, but too much time spent on it can have a negative effect on your mental health. When you’re scrolling through Instagram looking at the super successful lives that others have made for themselves, you have to remind yourself that you’re only seeing the good parts of their lives. Without trying, your mind starts comparing your life to the “lives” it sees online. Start unfollowing accounts that don’t serve you or consistently make you feel bad or envious. Start limiting your time on social media to find other productive activists that make you feel good about yourself and your talents. This will create a better environment for yourself to grow and learn in many different ways.
Exercise regularly
When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins that suppress the hormones that involve anxiety and stress. Endorphins boost your sense of well-being and serotonin. Simply going to the gym, on a run/walk, or doing yoga will help to make any day better. It is important to make exercise a priority when trying to put yourself first because getting your body in shape helps to get your mind in shape too. All you need is a half hour a day, and to find some type of movement that you love.
Learn to say no
I think we can all say we’ve endured moments where we’ve had a hard time saying no to activities with friends or family when we really didn’t feel like going. Learning to say no to things that you don’t want to do is one of the most important skills you can learn in life. Being able to say no will help you learn to put your feelings and yourself above what other people are wanting to do!
Trust yourself
It’s easy to get in situations where you don’t trust others or become closed off. Making sure that you trust yourself more than you trust others will play a huge role in the mindset of you being the first on your priority list. Just like you give others your trust, you need to give yourself that same trust so you can take care of yourself and all other things you need.
Compliment yourself
Give yourself positive self-talk. Stop degrading yourself because of what others are doing or how others are looking. Give yourself a compliment every morning when you look in the mirror. Practice this everyday, being confident in yourself will come from being continually kind and patient with yourself. We live our lives inside of our heads; let’s make it a nice place to be.
When it comes to putting yourself first, it’s important and valid to be selfish and take the time you need. Just like when you’re on an airplane, before you take off the flight attendants tell you “Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop from the overhead area. Please place the mask over your own mouth and nose before assisting others.” You can’t help anyone else if you don’t put yourself first and work to create an environment that you want to blossom in. Make sure you do what’s important to your self growth and how you perceive the world. Trust yourself and what you can do when making decisions to better you and your life. With just taking the above tips into account, your everyday life will see tremendous growth!
