This Valentine’s Day: Operation CREATE

Valentine’s Day is the celebration of love. Whether you’re in a romantic relationship or not this Valentine’s Day, let’s focus on falling in love with the person staring back at you in the mirror. Every morning after a long night’s sleep, you motivate yourself to step out of your place of comfort and get through the day. That alone is something to celebrate. Here are some ideas in order for you to fall in love with yourself this Valentine’s Day. Operation C.R.E.A.T.E will ensure you create our own sense of appreciation for yourselves on February 14.

Change your mindsets. The first step to self-love is acknowledging reasons why you should love yourself. This can be demonstrated through any mediums that speaks to you. If you’re the artsy type, opt for a canvas collage. Attach your favorite photos of yourself, write down some quotes that remind you of your personality, transcribe some song lyrics that resonate with you, or add any other fun and unique items you can think of. Decorate the canvas with doodles or stickers–make it your own! If you are more of an organized person, try a list. Set a timer for five minutes and strive to write down all of your positive traits in a list until the timer goes off. After the timer rings, read through your list and say “I am” before each characteristic. This is an easy way to uplift and remind yourself how amazing you truly are. Finally, if you’re a music lover, create a playlist with encouraging and cheerful songs. You could always refer to pre-created playlists if you don’t feel like making your own. Listen to the playlist and dance around or belt the words. Either way, you are sure to feel more confident!

Rest and relaxation. Now that you recognize all the great qualities you have to offer to the world, it’s time to cut yourself some slack. Whether you’re the type to stress and overload yourself with commitments, or the type that binge watches 7 hours of The Bachelorette, most people put lots of pressure on themselves in day-to-day life which creates tension. To relieve some of that tension, I recommend taking a bubble bath. Pull out all of those bath bombs you have been storing since 7th grade and put them to good use. Or, apply a face mask and listen to soothing spa music. Get cozy in fuzzy socks and wear your bulkiest sweatshirt–remember you have no one to impress but yourself. Really give yourself this time to clear your mind. Remind yourself you are worthy of this break. Refer back to your canvas, list, or playlist for that boost of reassurance we all need here and there.

Entertainment and enjoyment. Use this time to do something that makes you happy. If you’ve always had that one thing you wanted to try, now’s the time to go for it. Surf the web for new hobbies or pick up a new skill. For some inspiration, you could try sewing or knitting. Maybe you want to try learning ASL or French. Let’s say you wanna juggle to show it off to your friends, watch a YouTube video. Try learning a fun magic trick or doing a new zumba workout routine. Prep for you and your friends to do a PowerPoint night, this would entail each friend creating a funny themed Google Slide and then presenting to the group. You could use Zoom and then present your topic on anything you want to friends and family. For example some slide themes could be “What would the US Presidents look like as Bitmojis,” or “Which of our friends would be top of Abby Lee Dance Miller’s Pyramid”. Get creative with it and you’re sure to have some good laughs.

Acts of service. At this point, you should be having a great Valentine’s Day filled with self love. While you might be spending Valentine’s Day by yourself, there are people in the world that spend every day by themselves and alone on the streets. Take some time to give back to others and truly appreciate all aspects of your life that you are grateful for. Gather some of your clothes from 5th grade that don’t fit anymore and donate them. Collect cans that you can donate to food drives. If possible, donate money to different charities or organizations online. Anything you can do to give back to the community will make you feel great in return. While you are doing an act of service for others, you yourself are rewarded with a sense of pride in knowing that you make a difference in someone else’s life.

Treat yourself. Okay now here’s where things get interesting. You deserve a treat for all the things you accomplished today….even if you didn’t do the first four steps and just skipped to this one, no one’s judging. Try to bake something Valentine’s Day themed. Whether you prefer brownies, cupcakes, or cake pops, try out a new recipe for your favorite dessert. After you finish baking, it’s time to decorate. Whip up some pink or red frosting (or if you’re like me, just buy a premade package) and top that on your dessert. Add heart shaped sprinkles or mold fondant into the shape of a heart and put it on top. Decorate with whatever you feel drawn to and be unique. Even if you don’t want to decorate it, it will taste just as good. Remind yourself you deserve this treat and make sure to enjoy every bite.

Evaluate. Now that your Valentine’s Day was a success, it’s important to keep this mindset throughout the year. Take a moment to reflect on your day. Maybe you might find it inspiring to watch a Youtube video, listen to a podcast, or read a blog about self-love to cap the day off. You want to ensure this motivation you have continues for the remainder of 2021. After all, you are the only person in your life that you know is 100% going to be there for you the entire year, so you should treat yourself how you treat other people in your life. Be kind to yourself, don’t beat yourself up for little inconveniences in your life, and pamper yourself every once in a while. Every morning when you wake up, ask yourself, “Am I going to have a powerful and loving mindset today, or am I going to feel down all day?” The way you go about answering this question is up to you.