It's Your Skin...It's Time to Love Every Inch of It!

Yesterday, I was shown the following video during a meeting at work.  I found it extremely powerful and have had it on my mind ever since I watched it.  We spend so many years in this short life that we have here on Earth feeling inadequate.  We fear being judged by others.  We long to change who we are.  We envy those around us.  We are constantly wanting what we don't have.

I have an intense passion for helping others to be the best version of themselves.  Not because I think there is anything wrong with being less than perfect, but because I know that when we take care of ourselves, it is a way to build our confidence and to get past that constant fear of what others are thinking.  I know what it is like to carry around this wishlist of things I would like to change about myself.  That is not fun.  I am not perfect.  I have more flaws than I would like to count.  But, for the first time, I am comfortable in my own skin.  I am proud of my accomplishments...and I feel STRONG.  There is something incredibly empowering about feeling strong from the inside out.

So, today I leave you with a challenge.  I was listening to a podcast by Chalene Johnson earlier today and she was talking about compliments.  She said that when someone gives you a compliment, it is their way of giving you a gift, a gift to brighten your day.  Many of us immediately shoot the compliment down, "Oh, this shirt...it's so old." "No, I haven't lost weight, my pants are stretched out." "You think my hair looks good?  I didn't even straighten it today."  When you immediately dismiss a compliment, it is the equivalent of throwing that gift away that you are being given.  It is hurtful to the person giving the compliment, who feels like you are dismissing their thoughts, and it is hurtful to your self-esteem.  I challenge you to accept the compliments, even with a simple, "Thank you."  Take the compliment, accept it, internalize it, believe it.  

Don't waste what precious time you have on this Earth with constant fear and worry about what others think of you.  Dream about those mermaid tails, the cheetah legs, and shark mouths.  Aspire to love your wrinkles and embrace that gray hair.  BeYOUtiful.