Life is a series of lessons, the most important of which is to answer the question: How can I love myself?

Don’t wait to earn your love.

Love yourself today. Whatever you do, wherever you are in your life, no matter how much you judge yourself, love yourself. Love yourself when you can’t stand yourself, love yourself when you are ashamed of yourself, love yourself when you hate yourself. Love yourself when you are proud of yourself. Love yourself at the bottom as well as at the top. Don’t try to earn the right to your own love. Give it to yourself simply because you are.

Accept that you are imperfect.

You don’t have to be the smartest, most beautiful, or most successful person to receive love. And you learn this by first giving yourself permission to love your own personality. With your flaws, with the things that annoy you, with the traits you can’t change. People spend their whole lives improving themselves, but love shouldn’t come at the end. Self-love should be your companion at every stage of your life and every step of the way.

Trust only your inner feelings.

We often allow those around us to undermine our self-worth and seek external proof of what we know deep down inside—you matter, you are special, you deserve to be loved. If a person believes in this feeling, they do not need external factors to affirm themselves and will have a healthy relationship with their self.

Accept that you are perfect.

It is necessary. Your soul, your mind, your body. Everything is perfect just as it is. You are a beautiful human being in the midst of a beautiful universe, and although this is one of the most difficult truths, it is also one of the most obvious. Do not be afraid of your own perfection. Love yourself as a creature, perfect in your truth. And that will give you the freedom to be everything.

Love yourself because you can. And those who can love themselves can love others too.