DO YOU LOVE YOURSELF?

Many years ago, at the start of my career as a mortgage broker, I worked with several business coaches. One of them was Tom Hopkins, a well-known sales trainer. I still remember one of his suggestions. He encouraged us to start every morning by standing in front of a mirror, looking ourselves in the eyes, and repeating: “I love myself. I love myself.”

The reason for this simple exercise is quite profound. When you start your day with love toward yourself, you become more capable of sharing love with others. And when you approach life with love, you create an opportunity to experience something I wrote about last week: feeling good.

Think about it. How can we genuinely love others if we do not first learn to love ourselves? Interestingly, this idea is thousands of years old. In the Torah, we find the commandment:

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18)

The same teaching appears in the New Testament, where Jesus repeats this commandment and emphasizes its importance, saying, “There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:31)

Similar teachings about love, compassion, and caring for others can also be found in Islam. Isn’t it remarkable that different religious traditions share such a simple and powerful message?

But there is something else worth considering. The commandment tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves. This suggests that loving ourselves is an important part of learning how to love others. And loving yourself does not mean being selfish or thinking that you are better than anyone else. It means accepting yourself, appreciating who you are, and treating yourself with the same kindness and respect you would offer someone you love.

So, what do we need to do? Tomorrow morning, when you get up, stand in front of your mirror, look yourself in the eyes, and say: “I love myself. I love myself.” Try doing this every morning. Give yourself some time, and I believe you might be surprised by the results.

Why am I bringing this to your attention? Because I have practiced this simple philosophy for many years, and I believe it has helped me live a less stressful, more enjoyable life.

Of course, life brings challenges. We cannot control everything that happens around us. But we can influence how we respond to those challenges and how we feel about ourselves. As I often say, “I’m always good, and tomorrow I’m going to be even better.”

And it all begins with how we treat ourselves. After all, isn’t that what we all want—to feel good? Perhaps the first step is much simpler than we think. Just look in the mirror and say: “I love myself.”

And don’t forget to smile. The person looking back at you deserves your love, too.

Love and beauty go hand in hand. That is why I am sharing with you three beautiful flowers. You can find many more of these wonderful creations of nature in my book Reflections: The Healing Images.

Feel good, love yourself, and enjoy the beauty that surrounds you!