The Art of Self-Respect
A sense of obligation.
Can you feel your mind pushing you?
Obligations and people, situations and gestures. Follow them.
Your work starts at 8 am, you will show up.
The appointment is at 6 pm, you will show up.
The conference takes place at 2 pm, you will show up.
You schedule to go for a run at 8 am, you skip it.
You set out to go to the gym at 6 pm, you do not go.
You plan to book a trip to recharge, you delay it.
Why?
It is a lack of self-respect.
This blog post is built up in a way that resembles the process of creating a piece of art. The headings are the individual steps that you make during your journey and the result is what you create: self-respect.
The Idea
What comes to mind when you hear the word “self-respect”?
What does self-respect mean to you?
The moment you stand up for yourself, for your truth, this moment is fueled by self-respect.
The art of saying “no”, when neglecting others, who use you for their advantage, derives from self-respect.
The decision to start and take matters into your own hands, embracing difficulties to experience fulfillment, creates self-respect.
Your self-respect is the backbone of your self-confidence, self-worth, and mental abilities branching from making decisions, to the way of handling discussions when different opinions clash.
The Materials
Finding out what makes you the person you truly are, is the foundation, rich in possibilities, that not only defines you but rather guides you through life. Apart from showing you the kind of artist you are, it is the source for creating artworks so magnificent that not even you, the artist, could have imagined it to become this breathtaking.
Take time to ask yourself…
- What does my mind sound like when my surroundings are silent?
- What habits give me a sense of fulfillment?
- What obstacles are no longer hindrances?
- What are my values?
- What makes me dream?
- What are the people like, I surround myself with?
- What does living feel like to me?
- What feeling prevails inside me when I get help from others?
- How do I embrace pain?
- How do I celebrate small achievements?
- How do I express gratitude?
- How do I embrace hardships?
- Am I honest with who I am?
The Creation
For a piece of art to be born, work has to be put into it. So, do not solely stare at the blank canvas, wondering why nothing is changing. The creation of your artwork takes place when you pick up your paintbrushes and colors, your values, identity and boundaries.
You define what your colors are. You create your thoughts and they define you. You create yourself.
Do not underestimate the limitless power of your thoughts. Self-talk fuels your sense of self-respect in a way no other attribute can.
If you keep doubting and deriding yourself, your lack of self-respect will flow through every petite fissure of your being.
Do you long for this?
Instead of criticizing every little mistake you have made throughout the day, stop and take time to reflect. Stop for a moment, bring your body to a halt, simply stop moving around.
Ask yourself: why am I diminishing my worth? How can I work with my mistakes to become better? What can I do to improve this situation?
You will soon realize that you have control over your actions and reactions. Your self-respect will lead you to solutions greater than the originally anticipated outcome. Why? Simply because you stopped bad-mouthing yourself, stood up for your mistake and found a solution.
This is you breaking the cycle of everlasting complaints because you know that you deserve better from yourself. You are worthy of being understood and loved, especially by yourself.
You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.
Buddha
As you define your colors, you establish your own, personal, internal qualities. Traits, incomparable with those of others. Incomparable because the concept of comparison lies within yourself, for yourself.
How did your abilities change over time? What direction do you aspire to evolve?
These comparisons will guide you to where you belong. External comparison with others and their uniqueness will lead to a desire for validation from outside. The source of self-respect derives from within yourself and your way of walking through life, not from other people’s walks of life.
You found the answer to the question of which color you should paint with and now you burst with bright colors.
The Artwork
Why do you aspire to work on your self-respect?
Why does an artist aspire to create art?
Respect your values. Respect your identity. Respect your boundaries. Respect your feelings. Respect your needs. After all, it is you who lives this life of yours, no one else will live it for you.
Hence, show some respect for yourself. You deserve it!