The Single Woman’s Dash of Sass: Self Love is About Contentment, Not Complacency

Quotes of the Day:

“The arrogance of success is to think that what we did yesterday is good enough for tomorrow.” ~William Pollard

“You will never be entirely comfortable. This is the truth behind the champion – he is always fighting something. To do otherwise is to settle.” ~Julien Smith

The Single Woman Says:

I received an email from a reader last night that left my head spinning. She loves The Single Woman message and has even introduced several friends to my Twitter page and column, so she is a supporter in every sense of the word. But it seems one of her friends who has wholeheartedly embraced TheSW message has taken it to the next level – thinking that because I encourage people to love themselves wholeheartedly and to be content with exactly who they are, she can stay stuck at the level she’s at, never making any changes or improvements, and love and blessings and happiness will just come to her because she dares to love herself.

This is completely inaccurate.

Contentment is one thing. Complacency is another. Yes, it is important and necessary and even vital to your well-being to love yourself and forgive yourself and accept yourself and all your imperfections and flaws and mistakes – but it is not okay to hide behind self-love in order to avoid self-improvement. Not getting down on yourself because you haven’t yet “arrived” doesn’t give you permission to stay stuck at a rest area of complacency on the way to your destination! Be happy with who you are, but never stop aiming higher, trying harder, reaching further. There is always room for growth!

You’re not supposed to be perfect. The journey isn’t about perfection. It’s about being a little better than the day before. It’s not healthy to beat yourself up for your mistakes, but it’s also not healthy to sweep them under the rug in the name of “self-love.” Every day you should strive to be better, to be stronger, to be wiser. Love yourself right where you are, but never stop reaching for the stars!