Top 10 reasons why women should read self help by Marianne Vicelich

2 September 2015

Since I was young I always had a stack of self-help books on my bedside table. Why? Because I always wanted to bring the highest version of myself to everything I did. I wanted to know myself and accept myself, flaws and all. Self-help can be daunting, confusing and laughable at times. Yet self-help has turned my life around, changed me into being able to live the fullest expression of the real me. Here are 10 reasons why you should incorporate self-help into your daily practices.

1. Life Starts To Change When You Love Yourself

Falling in love with yourself is a journey, an active adventure that touches every aspect of your life. Once you start down the road to discovering what loving yourself really means, life starts to change. Loving yourself completely is the unwavering commitment to and active expression of knowing yourself, and accepting yourself. It allows you to cherish your own brilliance, without reserve or fear of it being greater than someone else's light. Accept your flaws, idiosyncrasies and weaknesses, while loving yourself for who you have been and are. Forgive yourself for decisions that were not self-supporting. Acknowledge the dark parts of your life and spirit and love them just as they are.

2. Happiness Is An Attitude

The most wasted day is that in which we have not laughed. Happiness happens inside-out, not outside-in. There is no magical formula that states that X per cent of status or wealth with guarantee happiness. To be happy you must think yourself happy. Happiness is a product of the mind, of attitude and of thought. Happiness comes from you, not to you.

3. The Importance Of Balancing Yourself

Balance is one of the key elements for your wellbeing. Try to imagine an old-fashioned weight scale - to balance the scales you need to put equal parts of your life on either side. Too much on one side will topple the scale, but when you place just the right amounts on either side, you find a force that's balanced and powerful. When you are in a relaxed state of mind you are able to see things clearer, find a solution to that problem you were mulling over and even just reaffirm where you are and where you want to be. When you are calm, relaxed and peaceful, you get back in touch with who you are.

4. Treat Life As a Precious Gift

Treat life as the previous gift that it really is. Each day when you are awake, you can appreciate the fact that you are alive, that you have one more day to work toward your benefit and that of others. You can remind yourself that life is rare and precious and you would like to make the best use of it while you have the opportunity.

5. Let Go Of Fear

When you become secure of your inner love, you no longer fear the future. This releases the ego's need to fear the future and hold into the past. Forgive the past and accept that love is guiding you forward.

6. Embrace Defenselessness

When your mind grows stronger, your defenses weaken. You no longer defend yourself against the attacks of others. This is investing in their illusion. When you think with love, you have nothing to defend against. When you maintain a defenseless attitude you choose to see love in your attacker and it leads you to a state of peace.

7. Perception Is a Mirror

What you look on is your state of mind, reflected outward. The world is only in the mind of the maker. Mirroring teaches us that how we experience relationships and situations in our lives is often a direct reflection of how we feel internally. For example, if you believe in yourself, others will believe in you. If you say hurtful things to yourself, others comments will hurt you, comments that often have no hurtful intention behind them.

8. The Universe Has Your Back

The worst thing that has ever happened to you can be the best thing that ever happened to you if you only let it. Faith is everything. When you believe in faith, you can relax knowing that it's all good and that the universe is supporting you and will point you in the right direction. Let intuition be your guide.

9. Climb Your Way To Your Higher Self

The goal of climbing your way to your higher self is to permanently change your beliefs. Prepare for great results when you start choosing to change your mind. When your thoughts are aligned with love, they ignite your good vibrations. When your vibrations are aligned with great thoughts, you are 100 per cent attracting great things.

10. Take Back Control Know that your life's purpose is right inside you.

Everytime you blame the world for what you have or haven't got you are giving your power away to others. If you are out of control then you will feel like a victim, powerless in your life. Life will happen to you and you will choose to beat yourself up again and again. It doesn't matter what has happened to you, or how bad it has been, you can take back your power. Listen to your soul and it will show you the way. Be brave.