The other day I was chatting with a friend who was struggling to define her audience – she knows that she wants to serve a certain kind of person like herself, a mom with kids who require more attention than most. She said, “I keep ending up with negative terms like unappreciated moms”.

The question that came to my mind was – never mind whether others appreciate this person you are imagining, does she appreciate herself? And that’s the question that I want to put to you. 

It’s all very well to complain that others don’t appreciate what you do. We’ve all had those moments of resentment, and it’s only human to feel that way. But to be honest, the appreciation of others, while nice, is fleeting. It’s a brief moment of warm fuzzies, and then it’s gone. Nobody can appreciate somebody else as a fulltime job. If they are, you have to ask yourself what else they have going on in life.

But you can appreciate yourself – all the time! You can see what you are doing that is helpful to the world, your loved ones, or even just for yourself, and you can give yourself an internal (or even external in the mirror – hi Mel Robbins!) high five. You can pat yourself on the back for your own efforts, and if you are a nut like me, you can make a little celebration dance video and put it out there on social media for all your friends to laugh at. If that’s not your jam, just take a moment to give yourself credit for the good things you do, no matter how small. Don’t dismiss your own goodness. If you would thank somebody else for what you did, thank yourself too.

If you are thinking what a self-absorbed, selfish person you have to be to appreciate and celebrate yourself, consider the following. You are created in the image of the Divine. The Divine doesn’t make trash, and who are you to say otherwise?

I’d love to know how you appreciate and celebrate yourself!