How many times have you looked at yourself in the mirror and immediately started searching for every single ‘imperfection’ and ‘flaw’ (even though they are barely even visible)?
How many times have you felt unattractive and imperfect just because you don’t fit the beauty standards imposed by the media?
I bet you went through this one too many times (just like myself) but I have good news for you: From today, all of this will change!
From today, you will learn to embrace your natural beauty and not the fake one imposed by the media because you owe it to yourself and the people who care about you.
So, the first step with diving into the waters of freedom and self-confidence is forgetting every single picture and video you’ve ever seen on social media, TV or any other media out there.
Why?
Because none of it is real.
None.
Everything that is produced or advertised by the media is just bait and its sole purpose is to convince us that we need that specific product in order to become pretty (or prettier), just like the ‘perfect’ person advertising it.
The main reason why the media bombards us with all those attractive young girls and guys is to make us question our own definition of beauty, to shake our self-esteem and make us think that we’ll never be really beautiful unless we start doing what they suggest, aka starting to buy things that will make us prettier.
But you know what?
True beauty is much more than having a model-perfect appearance!
Yes. True beauty has nothing to do with the perfect hairstyle, the perfect body type or the perfect styling because all this is outer beauty and has nothing to do with our true selves.
True beauty is not having a perfect stylist who will hide all of our ‘imperfections’ and make us look flawless.
True beauty (aka real beauty) is accepting all of our imperfections and loving ourselves for who we really are because if you feel beautiful, you will be beautiful.
No matter how much the media tries hard to define the term of beauty and impose their own definition of it, the only truth is that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes and not just in an hourglass figure or XS.
True beauty consists of inner beauty, self love, positivity, freckles, self-esteem, wrinkles, stretch marks, natural hair care, a few pounds more, curly hair, straight hair, being grumpy, laughing and crying because true beauty is imperfect.
True beauty is not demanding or something that you can acquire overnight.
It is there inside you.
It has been there within you all this time and all you need to do is open your eyes and see it!
All you need to do is love who you are, love your body, love your hair, love all of your imperfections and embrace your beauty (and not the one being advertised) because that is exactly what makes you really beautiful!
You are beautiful in your own way!
You are a beautiful woman or man in your own way, with your own way of thinking, expressing and perceiving things around you.
There is not a single stylist in the world who can make you beautiful if you don’t feel that way on the inside because beauty is not born in the beauty salon—beauty is born and maintained within your mind, body and soul!
(Don’t ever forget that).
Beauty is feeling comfortable in your own skin despite the fact that you’re far from perfect because none of us is perfect and neither will we ever be!
Even those people who are made to look perfect by the media don’t look like that and neither do they feel like that in the real world.
When far away from the stage lights, they are just ordinary people like you and me, looking themselves in the mirror late at night and searching for imperfections.
This is just how it is and there is no point in blaming yourself for not looking what they want you to look like.
There is no point in living a life imposed by TV, Hollywood, Google, social media or any other media—you are unique and ‘beautiful in your own way ‘cause God makes no mistakes’ (as said by Lady Gaga in one of her songs)!
It’s time to absorb the fact that the definition of beauty has nothing to do with how others display it.
It’s time to retrain your thinking and embrace your real, natural beauty by acquiring the following thoughts!
1. Take a good look at the people you love
The first step to realizing that real beauty comes from within ourselves is by looking at the people you love (your family, your children, your parents, your husband or wife, your girlfriend or boyfriend).
Do you notice something that all of them have in common?
Aren’t they all beautiful in their own way just like they are?
Their quirks, ‘imperfections’, facial expressions and everything they do looks cute to you, right?
This is because each person has their own qualities, imperfections and flaws that make them beautiful and unique.
None of the people you love has a model-perfect appearance but still they look perfect to you, right?
Now that we have acquired this knowledge, it’s time to apply it to yourself too!
The people you love perceive you in the exact same way.
To them, you are the most beautiful ‘imperfect creature’ on earth and they wouldn’t want you to ever change.
So, why racking your brains over the fact that you don’t resemble that ‘perfect people appearance’ created by the media?
Why waste your time thinking that you’re not really beautiful if you don’t look flawless or fit the impossible standards when to those who truly love you, you are beautiful just the way you are?
The only thing you need to do is take a good look at the people you love and see the reflection of your beauty in their own.
See also: 8 Reasons Quirky People Make The Best Partners
2. Accept the things you cannot change
One of the biggest mistakes that many of us are guilty of is being constantly on the lookout for every single flaw and imperfection and one of the main reasons why we’re doing it is because of the media and their representation of ‘perfect people’.
We become convinced that our wrinkles, stretch marks or something else are something we need to get rid of in order to become pretty.
We feel helpless and ready to do anything just to get the desired results but things usually don’t work that way.
Instead of dwelling in a state of total discontent and the need to change the unchangeable, we should accept the things we cannot change and accept the fact that being imperfect is what makes us perfect (in a way).
Look at yourself in the mirror and embrace every single thing that you think is not good enough and that needs changing.
Accept the fact that all of these little things make you who you really are and even if you succeeded in changing them, you wouldn’t be the same person anymore.
Wrinkles make you beautiful, freckles make you beautiful, stretch marks make you beautiful and all the other imperfections make you beautiful because it is variety and not perfection that makes one beautiful!
3. Treat your body and mind with love and care
After you accept the things you cannot change, now is the time to focus on the things you can influence because that is the only recipe to embracing your true, natural beauty.
So, if you think you need to lose some weight, roll up your sleeves and start jogging, hit the gym when you can and change your diet, aka eating healthy food.
If you think that you’ve been too harsh toward your body and mind lately, it’s time to get enough sleep, grab some fresh air, go for a walk, read a good book, enjoy a long bubble bath and tell yourself that you’ll never, ever again mistreat yourself in any kind of way.
It’s time to appreciate yourself and do what you can in order to improve your lifestyle and not because the media is forcing you to do so but because you decided to do it for yourself, for the sake of your health and for the sake of feeling great in your own skin.
Treat your body and mind with love because they are a part of you and they deserve to be taken care of.
Your body and mind deserve to be embraced instead of constantly judged because they’ve been there for you and with you all this time and the least you can do for them and yourself is to treat yourself nicely and with respect by living a healthy and happy life!
See also: This Is What Loving Yourself Really Means
4. Focus on the positive things about you
Many of us (including myself) get obsessed about something specific on ourselves that we desire to change at any cost but as already said, some things are simply unchangeable and they should be embraced instead of being forced to change.
To keep this from happening and to learn to embrace your beauty inside out, you need to create a list of the positive things about your body and personality.
To make it easier to do so, imagine that you’re one of your close friends and list all the things and qualities that you find beautiful about you.
(You can do it out loud if needed).
Focusing on the positive things about you is one of the best ways to start celebrating your real, inner beauty because that way you are protecting yourself from unnecessary overthinking and overanalyzing negative aspects of your body and personality.
So, whenever negative thoughts and ‘imperfections’ start occupying your mind, just read the list over and over again until you start appreciating all those amazing things about you that will help you erase the negative ones.
Keep reading the list until you realize that you’re truly beautiful inside out just the way you are!
5. Practice a positive visualization technique
This is an alternative to the previous point and it is also an instant solution for when your mind gets occupied by negative thoughts about yourself.
So, what you need to do is close your eyes, breathe deeply and visualize yourself as a person who is confident and brave and nothing and no one can stand in your way.
“You are what you’re thinking.”
You need to instill the idea into your brain that you’re all of this and more because you truly are and the more you repeat it, the greater the results will be.
6. Stop comparing yourself with others
In order to learn to embrace your true beauty and not the one advertised by the media, you need to stop comparing yourself with others because the longer you do so, the longer you’ll stay in this vicious circle of dissatisfaction and helplessness.
So, stop comparing yourself with those ‘perfect people’ you see on TV or social media or the people in your vicinity.
Keep in mind that you don’t need to look like someone else in order to be considered beautiful because you already are beautiful and you just need to realize that.
As already said, diversity is what makes us truly beautiful, so there’s no need to waste your time thinking if you do this or that or if you start looking like someone else, you will finally meet the media’s beauty standards.
No!
Just because we think that someone else looks better than us this doesn’t make us less beautiful.
As a matter of fact, this makes us even more beautiful because being unique and self-aware is what makes us truly beautiful!
7. Find the beauty in expressing your authentic self
Instead of obsessing about all those changes your body is going through, redirect your thoughts to other things that will help you get the best out of you.
Find the beauty in expressing your authentic self by helping others, listening to their problems, engaging in different communities, writing, singing, drawing or whatever makes you feel fulfilled and helps you reach your full potential.
The happy faces of those you helped, inspired and took care of will be the greatest gift that will make your true beauty shine because true beauty has nothing to do with a perfect body.
True beauty stems from the depths of your heart and soul and as long as you take care of them, you will never stop shining.
As long as you’re being who you are and as long as you’re willing to express your authentic self, your true, inner beauty will come out and it will overshadow everything negative you once thought about yourself.
So, embrace your body, embrace your mind, embrace your soul!
Embrace your beauty and live an inspirational and motivational life because that’s the only thing that matters!
See also: I Am Perfectly Imperfect And That Is More Than Okay With Me
