Self-love can be a difficult thing to come to terms with. Even if you have a clear understanding of what it is and how important it is, practising self-love can be incredibly challenging. If you’re in a bad place, sometimes the hardest thing to do is to remember that you are worthy of love. However, it’s at times like these, when you least feel like it, that it’s the most important time to practise self-love.
Sometimes, getting there on your own feels like mission impossible. All you really need is a little bit of help, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Best of all, it doesn’t even need to be anything elaborate. Simply being reminded to appreciate yourself, your accomplishments and just who you are can be enough to get you heading back in the right direction.
One of the most important parts of self-love is that it can help you get to a place where you are happy and content all on your own. Being independent in your happiness is an incredible feeling – not having to rely on anybody else to make you happy or feel content is what we ought to all strive for.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t allow other people to contribute to your happiness, but it should be just that – a contribution. Once you’re able to be truly happy on your own, you will be able to really pursue happiness with a partner or among friends.
Of course, we all have dark days, and that’s okay. It’s our ability to get out of them and help ourselves feel better that is what becomes important. Sometimes, all you need is to hear an affirmation – a little reminder that what you’re feeling is normal, that you will feel better and you deserve to feel like a million bucks.
Here are 50 self-love quotes to remind you that you deserve the world and more.
Famous Quotes About Self-Love
“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.” – Oscar Wilde
“Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.” – Lucille Ball
“If only you could sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.” – Fred Rogers
“Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.” – Toni Morrison, Beloved
“Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
“I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more sustained I am, the more I will respect myself.” – Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre
“You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.” – Diane Von Furstenberg
“Self-care is never a selfish act—it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer to others.” – Parker Palmer.
“If you don’t love yourself, nobody will. Not only that, you won’t be good at loving anyone else. Loving starts with the self.” – Wayne Dyer.
“To establish true self-esteem, we must concentrate on our successes and forget about the failures and the negatives in our lives.” – Denis Waitley.
“This life is mine alone. So I have stopped asking people for directions to places they’ve never been.” – Glennon Doyle.
“Our self-respect tracks our choices. Every time we act in harmony with our authentic self and our heart, we earn our respect. It is that simple. Every choice matters.” – Dan Coppersmith.
“Love yourself enough to set boundaries. Your time and energy are precious. You get to choose how you use it. You teach people how to treat you by deciding what you will and won’t accept.” – Anna Taylor.
“If you have the ability to love, love yourself first.” – Charles Bukowski.
“Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.” – M. Scott Peck.
“If you celebrate your differentness, the world will, too. It believes exactly what you tell it—through the words you use to describe yourself, the actions you take to care for yourself, and the choices you make to express yourself. Tell the world you are a one-of-a-kind creation who came here to experience wonder and spread joy. Expect to be accommodated.” – Victoria Moran, Lit from Within: Tending Your Soul For Lifelong Beauty.
“As hard as it is, owning who you are and knowing what you want is the only sure path to affirmation… I want women to know they can get out of any situation if they return to their core source of strength: themselves.” – Ashley Graham.
“I now see how owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.” – Brené Brown.
“To love yourself right now, just as you are, is to give yourself heaven. Don’t wait until you die. If you wait, you die now. If you love, you live now.” – Alan Cohen.
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson.
“Even when it seems that there is no one else, always remember there’s one person who never ceased to love you – yourself.” – Sanhita Baruah.
“Your self-worth is determined by you. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.”— Beyoncé.
Self-Care Quotes From Royalty
“Everyone of us needs to show how much we care for each other and, in the process, care for ourselves.” – Princess Diana of Wales.
“We just need to be kinder to ourselves. If we treated ourselves the way we treated our best friend, can you imagine how much better off we would be?” – Meghan Markle.
Self-Love Mantras to Remind You That You’re Enough
Worrying about what others think is only a distraction to living courageously.
- Confidence is the ability to feel beautiful without needing someone else to tell you.
- Your relationship with yourself sets the tone for every other relationship you are able to have.
- Self-love doesn’t mean that everyone will treat you the way you deserve to be treated. It means that you won’t let them change the way you see yourself; nor will you stick around for them to destroy you.
- You don’t need to be perfect to inspire other people. Let others be inspired by how you deal with your imperfections.
- Owning your story and loving yourself through that process is the bravest thing that you’ll ever do.
- You can’t pour from an empty cup. Take care of yourself before you look after others.
- Who you are isn’t what holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.
- If you’re looking for somebody to change your life, look in the mirror.
Self-Love Quotes and Mantras About Body Confidence
“I had to grow to love my body. I did not have a good self-image at first. Finally, it occurred to me, I’m either going to love me or hate me. And I chose to love myself.” – Queen Latifah.
My body deserves love.
My body does amazing things.
Progress, not perfection. The journey of working hard to achieve your goals is more important than reaching the final destination.
I choose to think positively about myself.
Self-worth has nothing to do with clothing size.
I am deeply grateful for my body, my health, and my unique talents.
My weight, looks and body do not determine my worth.
Listen to what your body tells you with love and admiration.
Affirmations to Help You Develop Self-Love
I am a work in progress.
Nobody is perfect and we’re all on a continuous journey of self-discovery. You may reach a point where you have achieved self-love, and that is the goal. But we’re all constantly changing and growing, adapting to our circumstances and becoming the people we’re meant to be – that’s part of what makes life exciting. To embrace the ever-changing nature of our lives and ourselves is to accept that there are bound to be things that don’t go quite according to plan – and that’s okay. You are a work in progress, and it’s totally normal.
I am mine and nobody else’s.
First and foremost, you are accountable to yourself and you belong to nobody. You are not responsible for anybody else’s happiness or unhappiness. Your feelings are your own and you must embrace them as such. With this notion comes both rights and responsibilities, but to truly believe it will set you free and ensure that you never settle for less than you deserve.
I am enough.
Outrageously simple, but possibly the most important self-love affirmation you will hear today. Being enough means that you should need, or feel the need, to change yourself for somebody or something else. You may have flaws, as we all do, but flaws are different from the very things that make you who you are. Remind yourself every day that you are enough, and eventually, you’ll achieve a sense of calm that will change your life.
You are good, you are free, you are powerful, you are loved, you have value, and you have a purpose.
Remind yourself of these things every day, and you’ll be able to set out on a journey loving yourself and truly enjoying your life.
I am worthy of love.
Remind yourself that you are always worthy of love, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you will receive it. Being able to come to terms with these two truths can be difficult, but it will give you the strength to know when to stay and when to go.
I will fill my own cup.
Filling your own cup will allow you to be happy and content all on your own. However, it doesn’t mean that other people can’t add to it too. You may find love, whether in friendship, family or romance, that will contribute to your cup. Filling your own cup simply means that without these other people, you won’t have an empty cup. You will be happy alone and happy with the company.
There are things in life that I don’t have the power to change, and that’s okay.
Coming to terms with the fact that life is full of things you have no control over will help you find deep inner peace. Work on the things you can change, and be okay with those that you can’t.
I am capable of handling all of my responsibilities.
It may be difficult and you may not quite know how to handle certain situations, but, nevertheless, you can handle them anyway. Work hard, be open to the possibility of failure, and whatever happens, you’ll be able to learn from your experience and move forward.
Love Yourself and the Rest Will Follow
If there’s one thing these quotes, mantras and affirmations will teach you it’s that living a full, happy and content life starts with loving yourself. Self-love is about loving and appreciating every part of yourself – both the good and the bad. Your good qualities are achievements that you worked hard for. Conversely, your “bad” qualities – or rather, those that you perceive as being bad – are things to be worked on. Whether that means improving yourself and trying to be better, or learning to love things about yourself that you don’t think are worth loving.
Once you are able to be comfortable with every facet of yourself, you will find yourself with the capability of loving wholeheartedly and living your life fully.
Achieving self-love is a journey, a never-ending process that requires endless work. But investing in yourself is the best thing you could ever do.
Allow these quotes, mantras and affirmations to remind you of the importance of self-love, and use them to motivate you to love yourself.