and find more things to judge and criticize ourselves about . But what if instead of judgement you met yourself with love . Today when you find yourself comparing and judging yourself , pause , and invite love to talk with your critical thoughts . Notice how communicating with yourself as love would can feel nurturing and supportive .

Be gentle with yourself when you make a mistake . We are especially

vulnerable to our judgement and critical thoughts when we make a mistake . We can make the impact of the mistake much more destructive when we beat ourselves up about it . Our critical self-talk not only undermines our potential learning from the mistake , but it reinforces our unworthiness that keeps us stuck . Today , choose to be gentle with yourself when you make a mistake . Remind yourself that this is about progress not perfection and ask yourself what you learned from this mistake . Offer yourself tenderness and kindness as you pick yourself back up and start anew .

Celebrate your compassionate choices . Acknowledging the

intentional ways that you nurture self-compassion in your life is so important ! Start a practice of reflecting at the end of the day on the ways you were compassionate to yourself . Identify and celebrate all of them no matter how big or small . Each time you choose selfcompassion you are reinforcing that you love and value yourself , and are becoming your own best friend . Acknowledging our progress , reinforces the importance of being self-compassionate and provides a reward to encourage us to continue .

Committing to self-compassion will positively impact your life in miraculous ways ! You have the ability to choose self-compassion moment by moment , so remember progress not perfection . If you find yourself criticizing yourself , pause , take a breathe , and choose a more kind approach . What would you say to a dear friend ? Then say it to yourself !

May you commit each day to being compassionate to yourself , as you nurture peace in the world from the inside out !

Sending you peace , love and gratitude ,

KELLEY GRIMES , MSW - Kelley is an empowering counselor , self-nurturing expert , sought-after speaker , an expert columnist for Aspire Magazine , expert instructor for InspiredLivingUniversity . com and the author of best-selling book , The Art of Self-Nurturing : A Field Guide to Living with More Peace , Joy & Meaning .

She is the founder of Cultivating Peace and Joy , inspiring individuals to nurture peace in the world from the inside out . Kelley is passionate about empowering overwhelmed and exhausted individuals to live with more peace , joy , and meaning through the practice of self-nurturing . She loves working with individuals , couples , and families in person and virtually to transform their lives . In addition , she provides professional and leadership development to organizations dedicated to making the world a better place .

She is honored to have been awarded the Graduate “ Above and Beyond ” Field Instructor Award from San Diego State University and the “ Olive Branch ” Award from Hands of Peace . Download your free Self-Nurturing Starter Kit at www . cultivatingpeaceandjoy . com .

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