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  • How to Be Body Positive: Five Things to Stop Telling Yourself

    How to Be Body Positive: Five Things to Stop Telling Yourself

    When it comes to self-esteem, one of the biggest hurdles is body image. Unfortunately this issue is difficult because it comes from within. Here are five things to stop saying to yourself right now:

                 Being overweight or underweight is unhealthy and promotes bad eating habits.

     We’ve all heard the concerned friend say something derogatory about weight, followed by “…but I’m just worried about your health.” They couch insults in concern for your well-being. However, health and weight are two separate issues. It’s true that being extremely over or under weight can lead to certain health conditions, but unless they’re your doctor, an outsider cannot determine your health by your appearance alone. Begin to separate health and weight in your own mind.

                 How I look is more important than anything else.

    As they say, beauty is only skin deep. Our society is wrapped up in the idea that appearance matters more than character. We have turned being beautiful into a contest, where the rules of what IS beauty change unpredictably. There’s more to you than what you see in the mirror. Make a list of all the wonderful qualities you have that are not visible. Post it where you can see it. Talk about an ego boost!

                 Advertising campaigns are looking out for my best interests.

    Companies spend millions of dollars on advertising campaigns. The commercials might look like they’re solving your problems, but their one goal is to make you buy their product. End of story. Where would the weight loss industry be if people quit believing the advertisements? When you think critically about the advertisements that you see every day, you can begin to make better choices for YOU, and not for what THEY think you should be.

                 Hating how I look will motivate me to work harder.

    Shaming yourself or others about how they look will never be a positive motivating factor for them to change. Feeling bad about yourself tends to lead to damaging behaviours, depression and worse. We always take better care of something that we love and care about, so change self-talk to caring words. It will make a big difference in how easy it will be to make healthy choices.

    When I finally look perfect, I will be happy!

    Again, outward appearance is a separate entity from emotions. Deciding to be happy NOW will boost your mood, elevate your confidence and make it easier to make healthy loving choices for your body. Think of two people, one with a permanent scowl, and the other with a cheery disposition. Knowing nothing else about how they look, which one will be more attractive to you? I bet you said the one with the smile.

    Being happy and healthy are choices that are in your control. You can’t control how others perceive you, but you can choose every single day to be cheerful, and to make healthy choices. I suggest thebodypositive.org or bigbeautifulwellness.com for more resources.

    Stay amazing!

  • Accept Yourself: Dealing with Body Image

    Accept Yourself: Dealing with Body Image

    People are afraid of their bodies. They avoid mirrors, scales and eye contact with strangers; they are not confident when they walk down the street. Somewhere along the way, they realized that they are not pretty enough, or tall enough, or fit enough – and it is taking over their lives. It has become “cool” to bring yourself down, to shed light on the things you hate about yourself and toil tirelessly in order to get rid of them. This is a destructive habit that you need to break right away.

    The media is one of the biggest culprits of this craze; by presenting us with paper-thin female supermodels and impossibly muscular male icons, these unrealistic ideals become something we feel obliged to live up to. That’s not to say there is anything wrong with the bodies of the people in the media. Every person is special in their own way. The thing is, people come in all shapes and sizes and by asking everyone to conform to a cookie-cutter ideal, the beauty industry is shattering the self-esteem of its subscribers all around the world.

    There is absolutely no fault in looking how you look, nor should you ever feel that way. So what if you hate your freckles or you think your feet are too big? What you pick out as ugly may be someone else’s cup of tea. Diversity is beautiful and it is often our differences that make us stand out from the crowd. We only want what we don’t have, but our bodies are our selves and we’re stuck with them whether we like them or not. Everyone has assets and everyone has flaws – hold your head high and show off yours with pride.

    Body image isn’t only about image, either. Consider your well-being and how comfortable you feel in your own skin. It is important to take care of yourself: while overeating should be avoided and exercise is important, excessive physical activity and calorie counting to the point of obsession is definitely not good for you. Find a balance because, ultimately, your happiness is the most important factor.

    Look at your body in a positive light. Focus on what you like and don’t look to others for visual cues. Your appearance is your identity and you are free to do with it what you like. Why bother emulating someone else when you are unique? You can definitely express yourself using your appearance. If you decide to dye your hair, get a tattoo or start an exercise program, that’s great — but make sure you’re making these decisions for yourself, not just following the leader. If you want to make changes, these changes are up to you and you alone – don’t let others dictate what you should look like or how you should feel about yourself. After all, it is your body.

    Accept yourself for who you are. Respect yourself and expect to be treated accordingly.

  • Brand Yourself: Why It Works

    Brand Yourself: Why It Works

    You are special. You have unique gifts, talents, and qualities to offer the world. You know this, your family and friends know this – but does the world? This is the question you need to ask yourself, because when you enter the job market after graduating from university or college you will be a small fish in a big pond, and there are a lot of fish in that pond!

    In today’s knowledge-driven society, most people have a post-secondary education. In fact, according to Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, “in 2011 about 53% of Canadians aged 15 and over had trade certificates, college diplomas, and university degrees – an increase of 20 percentage points since 1990.” In other words, educational attainment will no longer set you apart from the crowd or give you a huge advantage over your competition.

    What’s the solution to this conundrum? Brand yourself! Whether you realize this or not, others are always branding you in their minds according to the image you project (consciously or unconsciously). According to the Business Insider, “human brains are wired to do this as a ‘short cut’ to make sense of the world. Without short cuts life would be confusing, complicated, and in some cases dangerous.” Your brain does you a favour by simplifying the world as much as possible.

    Indeed, the Boss Ladies report that it takes less than 30 seconds for an individual to form a lasting impression of you, and a whopping “20 further experiences with a person to change a negative first impression [someone has of you].” In addition, since employers receive, on average, between 75 and 105 applications for every job opening, they spend only 15-30 seconds reviewing each application – so they make almost a snap decision of whether you’re fit for the position or not. But don’t get stressed out about these statistics or feel defeated. You can take control of your “brand” and how others perceive you, and knowing this is the first step to creating the image you want to project.

    Tom Peters coined the term “Personal Brand” in his book called The Brand Called You. Your personal brand is your reputation and the public perception of who you are: your personality, values, and skills. People will decide whether they like you, trust you, and feel comfortable around you based on this judgement of who you are, regardless of who you really are as a person deep down inside. In fact, this snap judgement is very superficial. Your job is to make sure that the image you project to the world is authentic and relates to whom you really are.

    An authentic personal brand is a strong brand. You must take the time to get to know yourself on a deep level – who you are, what are your likes and dislikes, what are your values, etc. — so that you project a strong and consistent brand to the outside world. A strong brand is a powerful tool and will help you to stand out in the minds of others in a positive way. You can feel at ease and confident that the image you’re projecting on a daily basis is the image you want others to see.

    So, “always look put together,” says Divine Caroline. “You never know who you’ll meet at the grocery store.”