What comes to mind when you think of self-love? A day at the spa? A healthy meal? A bottle of your favourite cognac?

While these certainly affirm self-love, at the core of self-love is the belief that you are a valuable and worthy person. A practical definition  is

“To take care of yourself like you’d take care of a friend in distress. You treat yourself kindly. You don’t nitpick and criticize yourself. Self-love is a practice and it’s a skill that takes work.”

Do you believe that you are a valuable and worthy person?

Here are 10 ways you can demonstrate self-love in the workplace.

Learn to say “No!”

“No!”is a powerful word. It means you have boundaries and others should be aware of them. Many confuse saying “yes” all the time to everyone means you are performing at an exemplary level.  Behind the scenes though, you are probably experiencing, anxiety, stress and burnout. Learn to prioritise so that whatever you accept to do feeds into your overall priorities.

Take regular breaks

Constantly working on your computer may seem admirable however it leads to a drop in concentration and burnout. A quick leg stretch at regular intervals improves blood circulation, energises the mind, reduces stress and encourages creativity.

Stay away from energy suckers

Some people only know how to complain and never see the good in anything. As a result their energy is draining and often contagious. Avoid such people as much as possible and protect your energy.

Protect yourself

When things go wrong, workplace issues can easily escalate to finger pointing. Taking the fall for others and accepting others ill judgements of you may seem like a peaceful way out but you are enforcing to yourself that you do not matter so you are not worth standing up for.

Forgive yourself

It is guaranteed that at some point you will do something wrong; you are human. In those moments, it’s okay to feel the pain of messing up but don’t wallow in self-pity like the world is over. Review the situation, do what you can to remedy the situation and move on.

Develop yourself

Personal development is the beginning of all progress. Give yourself something to aim for on a regular basis. How can you improve your skills? Do you need help with managing your emotions? What happens to you on the inside has a direct effect to what happens on the outside and vice versa. Always treat yourself as a holistic human being.

Celebrate your successes

When things go really well, celebrate it! Make celebrating a habit! Do something to mark the moment in time; it can something as simple as having your favourite coffee or pizza for the team.  We are often better at beating ourselves down than we are at congratulating ourselves.

Store your good news

Positive emails from colleagues, executives or clients should be stored safely in a special folder for those moments when you’ll need of a boost of inspiration. The emails can also come in handy when motivating for a pay rise or a bursary.

Respect others

Treat others with kindly, you will feel better about yourself when you treat others the way you want to be treated.

Build support

Have one or two people you trust in the workplace to be a support base. These are people who can sense check your ideas or offer you support during challenging times. They don’t necessarily have to be your friends; this is more a supportive mentoring relationship.

Self-love is key to an emotionally balanced life at work and play; it improves your self-esteem, increases your sense of power and encourages healthy authentic relations with others.