Today's Affirmation

 

"Today, I will self-advocate.  Every time I advocate for myself, I become more empowered."

 

It is amazing to me how often we turn over our personal power to others, how often we don't speak up for ourselves.  Each time we don't, we abdicate responsibility for our own lives.  The more we do this, the more we feel powerless in our own lives.  And the more powerless we feel, the more frustrated, angry, bitter, and resentful we become.  Not a good way to go!

 

Each of us has a responsibility to ourselves. It is our job to take care of ourselves  and to open our mouths and communicate to others what we need, what we want, and what we don't want.  Doing this allows us to be true to ourselves.

 

And when we are true to ourselves, we grow and learn and become stronger and more assertive.

I know it is hard to speak up to others in order to create what you want, I really do, but if you don't speak up for yourself, who will?

 

So many people have accumulated resentment, bitterness, anger, frustration, because they have expended so much of their energy and time doing for others, but asking nothing for themselves.

 

It's great to be such a lovely person, but what about you??  Don't you deserve to get your needs met?  Aren't you important?  Yes you do deserve to get your needs met.  Yes you are important.  And the more you do not assert yourself, the stronger the message to others is that you don't matter.

 

When we first start to advocate for ourselves, it can be hard because we are not used to doing this.  But the more we do do it, however, the easier it becomes, and as this happens, the more empowered we feel.  And the more empowered we feel, the more control we realize we have over our own lives.

 

We realize that our lives are our responsibility.  It is up to us to set limitation and boundaries of what we are willing to do, not do, what we need, what we want.

 

It is perfectly okay to tell a daughter or son, "Look, I love you, but what you are asking is inconvenient for me right now."  Or to tell a boss, "I simply cannot take on another project right now."  Or to tell a needy friend, "I love you, but it is hard for me to sit and always listen to you complain about things."

 

Let's reevaluate the way we treat ourselves and then modify that way so that we support ourselves and take care of ourselves.  We owe it to ourselves.

 

In Love and Light,

R-