How to appreciate your uniqueness

Often, I find myself jealous of my friends who get more attention than me or whom I think is much more beautiful than I am. So, I try to buy clothes or put on make-up so that I become more like them so I can attract attention to. I keep striving to be like them without realizing what I'm really doing overtime. I'm trying to become someone I'm just not. It's not that I'm just trying to become more beautiful, but I keep having the image of my friend in my head rather than a more beautiful version of me.

Believe it or not, it really took me a while to realize that I cannot ever look just like my friend. It's completely impossible! Unless, I just decide to have plastic surgery so I can turn into her! So, I will no longer strive to look like her but just focus on the best version of myself. So here are some steps I plan to take:

• To remind myself that I am loved by my amazing friends and family for exactly the way I am, I think about the way that I love my friends and family, and how I would never want them to change or ever look like any model or movie star. I would want them to stay exactly the way they are and nothing more. So, I will think that for myself. My friends and family would never want me to change because they love me for the way I am so I should keep this uniqueness that I have. 
• Okay that wasn't really a step, but more like a reminder. That is something you should do every time you want to be someone you just aren't. And, don't forget these things take PRACTICE!

I also would like to add that my confidence lowers dramatically when I am with my friend who gets a lot of attention. When I am with her, I begin to feel like I'm not as worthy or as interesting as she is. And, thus, I become quiet, and I begin to even lose confidence in myself. I start to feel that if I don't get the same attention or compliments, I'm not as great or beautiful as she is. And, that is certainly untrue. It only gets worse because I become more closed-in and fearful of the thought that no one would want to speak to me. Figuring out what is causing the insecurity in yourself can help you to defeat it by being consciously aware of it and letting it go. But, this like all things requires practice.

Thus, to measure how often I take this step and the impact, I will record my progress later in the blog.