How to Be Your Own Best Friend

Photo Credit: Photography is Everything

I feel that it is so important to have friends. It gives me such a good feeling to know that I have some wonderful women that I can call my friend. I even have a couple of male friends who fit into that category. Having friends gives you a good feeling. It makes life better. To know that you have someone who is there for you. In your corner. Wanting you to succeed and there to help you do so.

Growing up I have had some really good best friends. These were my girls. We hung out together, we spent the night over each other's houses, We talked on the phone even when we had spent time together earlier that day. We giggled over our crushes and often wore matching outfits. If you were mad at one of us you might as well be mad at the other one too. We stuck together.

As I thought back to my best friends, I realized how important they were to me. I would not have done anything to deliberately hurt them. I would not say anything negative about them. I would treat them with consideration and care. Actually that is how I feel about all of my friendships. Not just my best friends. If you are like me then you feel the same way about your friends.

So if we have all of these good warm and fuzzy feelings about our friends why don't we feel the same way about ourselves? Some of us treat ourselves pretty rough. We rip and run and don't take the time to care for ourselves like we should,. We put off exercising, we eat junk, we don't get proper rest. We say things about ourselves that we would not dare say to our best friend. We are not good friends to ourselves.

Today it is time to do better. It is time to become your own best friend.

Take The Time For Self-Care

We do too much! We pack so much into our day that we are often running on fumes. I have been guilty of this too. I put too much on my plate and I am constantly on the go sometimes. With a super busy calendar I have often put off exercising. I have rushed through a fast food drive-thru because I was too busy to plan my meal. I have gone to bed late and gotten up early to meet a deadline. I have canceled doctor's appointments because I just did not have the time to go.Sound familiar? But taking the time to properly take care of ourselves is very important. I can always tell when my self-care is lacking. I become impatient, I feel tired and things start to overwhelm me. Now I make it a point to schedule things. I look at my calendar before I agree to do something. Self-Care is number one for me.. I make sure that I have time to meditate, journal, exercise. I get enough sleep. I say no. I no longer rip and run and am on constant go. Now I take the time for me. I listen to what my body needs...and I do that.

Only Sweet Talk Please

When we speak to our friends we would not dare be rough or nasty. We would not put them down or say negative things about them. But how often do we say negative things about ourselves? How often have you said... "that was so dumb of me" "that was stupid" "I'm too fat" You would not speak like that to your friend. Stop talking like that to yourself. Stop yourself when you find yourself speaking negative things about you. Cancel those words and replace them with something positive. Find some positive affirmations or write your own and repeat them often. Don't you say negative things about yourself and don't let other people say them about you either.

Spend time with Positive People

Some people are just negative. Their conversation, their attitude, everything about them is negative. They frown a lot. They always have something negative to say about what other people are doing, what they should be doing. Their outlook on life is just negative. Stay away from those people. You don't need their negative energy. Make sure that you surround yourself with people who see the good in a person or situation. Who can see the possibility.

There are many other things that you can do to become your own best friend. but these are some of my favorites.