Our society has a way
of teaching us that we’re never good enough, or smart enough, or successful
enough, or –whatever enough to be accepted.
Part of our job is to learn
how to accept and love ourselves, not because we believe we’re perfect, because
none of us are, but because we recognize that we have good qualities and the
potential to do good things for people.
One
way to start is by making a list of your own good qualities and then
write some evidence from your life, that supports the fact that you
exhibit these good qualities. If you are unable to list anything take that as a sign that
you need a partner to do it and get a close friend or a cognitive therapist to
help you.
If you’re working with a friend, you can make a similar list for
them. If you feel uncertain at all about the qualities on your own list,
then you can try visualizing yourself in front of one or more persons (the
more, the better) telling them what’s on your list and why. You can try to
imagine your voice as you say each word to them in a very convincing tone and
repeat your list and the evidence for it until all doubts have been erased.
