Be Nice to Yourself – 31 Practical Suggestions to Get Started

Life can be complicated.  The only person you are going to be in a relationship with your whole life long is yourself.   So it’s simply going to go a lot better if you learn how to love yourself.  Treating ourselves gently with the same love, care, and grace that we treat others can genuinely improve our self-motivation, joy, and mental health.   Sometimes you just need to start.  Start small or start big.   Just start.   Below are some practical suggestions to help you be nice to yourself. 

#1 Permit Yourself to Make Mistakes

There is a Japanese proverb that states “fall down seven times, stand back up.” One way to treat yourself better is to permit yourself to make mistakes. You will fall down a few times after making these mistakes, but dust yourself off and get back up. Learn from your mistakes. They truly are a fantastic way to learn and grow as a person.

#2 Journal Like Crazy

Write down your innermost thoughts and reflect! Do not be afraid to capture what makes you angry, what makes you sad and what makes you happy. Journaling can assist you prioritizing your feelings, tracking day-to-day symptoms, negative thoughts and behaviors. Your journal can support your efforts to track those triggers behind your negative beliefs and practices while also identifying what translates to a positive experience.

Journal can also serve as a method to help you identify personal goals and set up an action plan for achieving your goals. 

#3 Only Compete with Yourself

Do not worry about keeping up with the Joneses,’ Williams,’ Smiths’ or Richards.’ Just stay in competition with yourself to be the best possible you. That statement may seem easier said than done, but you are the only one who knows his or her exact set of beliefs, values, and goals. You define the metric of what success looks like in three, five or ten years.

Rather than falling into the trap of competing with other people, you have a real chance to set your own goals for yourself and celebrate each success along the way, setting new goals as you take a step forward.

#4 Do Not Look for Approval to Be Who You Are

Do not seek the approval of others to be yourself. Accept who you are and push forward with your agenda.

#5 Follow Your Gut

Follow your gut. Yes, knowing when to trust your gut can feel uneasy at times, but your intuition will keep you out of trouble if you allow it to do so. Your intuition is not likely to steer you wrong. Consider it to be the top tier of your decision-making tree. When everything else seems too reasonable to be true, open the channels to your intuition and use the moment as another building block for establishing trust with yourself.

#6 Indulge in Your Favorite Hobby

Hobbies can be therapeutic whether you love playing in the dirt and caring for your garden or acting as the self-proclaimed family genealogist. Hobbies are a wonderful way to give yourself a bit of joy!

#7 Give Yourself Permission to Say ‘No’

Do not feel like you have to say ‘yes’ to everything. Sure, the desire to be polite may feel like the right thing to do, but for your sanity and physical health, it may be in your best interest to say ‘no.’ Saying no will not make you a negative person, but instead it will help you fulfill your quest to be a happy person.

#8 Meditate

Everyone deserves 10 minutes of quiet and calm and self-centeredness. Find a quiet place and meditate.   And if the idea of meditation makes you sleepy, then just listen.   Listen to the wind or the air or the small still quiet voice.   You really can’t do it wrong.   Your mind, body, and spirit will thank you for it.

#9 Pay Yourself a Compliment

Look in the mirror and deliver a healthy round of compliments. No one else may get the chance to do it, so why not spend thirty seconds a day paying yourself a few praises. You deserve it!

#10 Abandon Regret

Just not going to be helpful.   Move onwards.

#11 Go to the Doctor

Stay on top of your annual visits to the doctor. Get your yearly physicals, immunizations, and preventative screenings that apply to your gender and age group.

#12 Take Care of Your Teeth

Just as you take care of your body, you have to take care of your teeth. Those pearly whites can have a direct impact on your entire health. You should plan to make at least one trip to the dentist each year or every six months for a cleaning.

#13 Ditch the Toxic People in Your Life

Get rid of the negative influencers in your life. They are undoubtedly holding you back. It is a big step, but there are a few tips that you can deploy to navigate the situation successfully.

• Establish Your Boundaries – You have to draw the line somewhere. Know what you will and cannot tolerate. Recognize the actions or behaviors that affect you.
• Do Not Wait for These People to Change – If these toxic individuals in your life do not show any signs that they can or will change, do not stick around to see if it will happen.
• Recognize When Someone is Project their Failures on You – Not everyone handles their shortcomings very well. Your success can feel like a punch in the gut for them. Do not allow others inability to celebrate your victory be the catalyst for bringing you down.
• Beware of the Controllers – Keep an eye out for those who seek to control or manipulate you.

#14 Bring on the Positive

After you ditch the negative, naysayers, surround yourself with positive people who share your vision, beliefs, and values. Look for those who want to give and receive unconditional love and respect.

#15 Allow Yourself to Dream Big

Your dreams do not have to be small because they make other people uncomfortable. Allow yourself to dream big without judgment or reservations.

#16 Take Naps

Sleep is a must-have activity for our bodies to function. It is a necessary rejuvenation and replenishment of our internal clock.    

#17 Occasionally Binge Watch A Series You Have Never Seen

Get your favorite healthy snacks and drinks ready. Treat yourself to a binge-watching event of a series on Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime.

#18 Indulge in a Bit of Culture

Whether your roots are steeped in European, Native American, African, Asian, South Pacific or Middle Eastern culture take a little time to get out and learn more about your culture or someone else’s. This exploration may take you on a fancy vacation or just a few blocks to the museum or a journey to a small-town festival.

#19 Donate Your Old Clothes

Your closet and drawers are probably full of old clothes and shoes you are no longer wearing. Get rid of the old stuff you no longer wear or fit and go shopping.

#20 Retail Therapy

Joke about it if you must, but retail therapy is absolutely a rewarding way to treat yourself. According to U.S. News, retail therapy may not help cure aggressive thoughts swimming around in your head, but it may help to boost your mood. From fashion to electronics, shopping is a fantastic fix when done in moderation. If your budget is a concern, you can always take steps to be strategic about your shopping experience or choose my favorite and hit up your local thrift store.

#21 Learn Something New

Take a little time to learn something new. Change things up by opening yourself up to a new world. Stimulate your mind by reading a different book, learn a new language or take a cooking class.

#22 Enjoy Nature Whenever Possible

Take a break and go outside on the sunny, pleasant days.   Dance in the rain.   Play in the snow.  Whatever works for you to get outside in nature!

#23 Build Your Playlist

Music is good therapy, and an uplifting playlist can do wonders for the psyche. Music promotes positive health. It helps our body to release endorphins, helping to not only improve our mood but boost creativity.

Get your list of top 20 songs and prepare to play it in loop mode.

#24 Go to Bed Early

One of the best ways to treat yourself is an early night to bed. While your mind may be racing our shoulders heavy, you have the option to make a list and put it off for a later time. Everything can wait until tomorrow.

#25 Get a Better Job (if you need to)

Do not settle for an unhappy work environment or career. Ideally, our work environment should be a place of creativity and professional growth. However, work environments can also prove to be dysfunctional or even downright toxic. Treat yourself better by moving into a new career and accepting a new challenge.

#26 Be Spontaneous Every Once in a While

Planning or just doing what it is you always do can weigh you down. Why not be spontaneous and do something that is entirely out of the ordinary?

#27 Find Ways to Laugh

The old cliché says that laughter is the best medicine. Sometimes we all need a happy giggle. Find a friend who makes you laugh or go to a movie. Lucky enough to live near a comedy club? Catch a show. Also, learn to laugh at yourself.

#28 Volunteer Your Time

Volunteer your time to help others. One of the best ways to treat yourself is to give to others. Find a volunteer opportunity in your community, nationally, or internationally to support. The personal reward you receive may surprise you.

#29 Don’t Skip a Meal

We have a terrible habit of putting everything and everyone ahead of ourselves which can lead to missing meals. Make time to eat healthy meals or keep a healthy snack nearby so that you do not harm your body by missing out on nourishment.

#30 Splurge!

Do not be afraid to splurge on the good stuff from time to time. Many of us live under the umbrella of a budget most days of the week. Do not hesitate to upgrade or buy the good stuff as a treat for yourself.

#31 Remember You are Worth It

Make yourself #1 in some of your decisions. While family, friends or career may take a front seat in our decision-making process, remember that it’s okay to put yourself in the front of some decisions.

#32 Find Your Path to Forgiveness

Find your path to forgiveness by forgiving yourself and others. Forgiveness is not acceptance, but it is the path to granting yourself the right to move forward with your life.

#33 Know Your Strengths

It is our natural tendency to focus on our weaknesses but treat yourself well each day by focusing on your strengths.

#34 Stand Up for Your Beliefs

Do not allow others to silence you every time your opinion differs from others. While the thought of taking such a bold move might seem intimidating a room full of people, you will have to take a stand and give yourself a voice.

Slow down to share your thoughts. You may have to do this a few times to help people understand who it is you wish for others to treat you, but do not cower. Find your inner, assertive self and prepare to become your most prominent advocate and do not feel like you have to apologize.

#35 Send a Motivational Message

Send a motivational text to a friend or family member to brighten their day. Simply motivating others will help to make you feel good.

#36 Take Up Coloring

Adult coloring books can be incredibly relaxing and therapeutic. They can clear your mind of unnecessary clutter while also helping you to sort out a few decisions mentally.

These are just suggestions on practical ways to treat yourself better. Self-care is an absolute must. It is easy for our day-to-day lives to leave us feeling stressed, overworked and underappreciated.

Reclaim control of your physical, emotional, and mental well-being today.

If all this talk about being nice to yourself has gotten you interested, you may want to check out our latest ebook, Self Care is Not Selfish. You can also visit our YouTube Channel where we recently posted some videos on Self Care and other mental health topics.