essay about love yourself

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Tips for crafting a compelling and authentic personal essay.

Writing an essay about yourself can be a daunting task, but when done right, it can be a powerful tool to showcase who you are and what makes you unique. Whether you’re applying for college, a scholarship, or a job, a well-crafted essay can help you stand out from the crowd and leave a lasting impression on the reader.

When writing a personal essay, it’s important to strike a balance between being informative and engaging. You want to provide the reader with insight into your background, experiences, and goals, while also keeping them interested and invested in your story. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of writing a compelling essay about yourself, from brainstorming ideas to polishing your final draft.

Essential Tips for Crafting

When crafting a compelling essay about yourself, it is important to think about your audience and what message you want to convey. Here are some essential tips to help you create an engaging and authentic essay:

A Powerful Personal Essay

Writing a powerful personal essay is a way to express your unique voice and share your personal experiences with the world. By weaving together your thoughts, emotions, and reflections, you can create a compelling narrative that resonates with your audience. To craft a powerful personal essay, start by reflecting on your own experiences and exploring the themes that matter to you. Pay attention to the details and emotions that make your story come alive. Be honest and vulnerable in your writing, as authenticity is key to connecting with your readers. Additionally, consider the structure of your essay and how you can effectively organize your thoughts to engage your audience from beginning to end. By following these tips and staying true to your voice, you can create a powerful personal essay that leaves a lasting impact on your readers.

Choose a Unique Aspect

When writing an essay about yourself, it’s important to focus on a unique aspect of your personality or experiences that sets you apart from others. This could be a specific skill, talent, or life experience that has had a significant impact on your life. By choosing a unique aspect to highlight, you can make your essay more compelling and memorable to the reader. It’s important to showcase what makes you different and showcase your individuality in a way that will capture the reader’s attention.

of Your Personality

When writing about your personality, it’s important to showcase your unique traits and qualities. Describe what sets you apart from others, whether it’s your creativity, resilience, sense of humor, or compassion. Use specific examples and anecdotes to illustrate these characteristics and provide insight into who you are as a person.

Highlight your strengths and acknowledge your weaknesses – this shows self-awareness and honesty. Discuss how your personality has evolved over time and mention any experiences that have had a significant impact on shaping who you are today. Remember to be authentic and genuine in your portrayal of yourself as this will make your essay more compelling and engaging to the reader.

Reflect Deeply on

When writing an essay about yourself, it is crucial to take the time to reflect deeply on your life experiences, values, beliefs, and goals. Consider the events that have shaped you into the person you are today, both positive and negative. Think about your strengths and weaknesses, your passions and interests, and how they have influenced your decisions and actions. Reflecting on your personal journey will help you uncover meaningful insights that can make your essay more compelling and authentic.

Your Life Experiences

When it comes to writing an essay about yourself, one of the most compelling aspects to focus on is your life experiences. These experiences shape who you are and provide unique insights into your character. Reflect on significant moments, challenges you’ve overcome, or memorable events that have had a lasting impact on your life.

• Consider discussing pivotal moments that have influenced your beliefs and values.
• Share personal anecdotes that highlight your strengths and resilience.
• Explore how your life experiences have shaped your goals, aspirations, and ambitions.

By sharing your life experiences in your essay, you can showcase your individuality and demonstrate what sets you apart from others. Be genuine, reflective, and honest in recounting the events that have shaped your journey and contributed to the person you are today.

Create a Compelling

When crafting an essay about yourself, it is essential to create a compelling narrative that captures the attention of the reader from the very beginning. Start by brainstorming unique and engaging personal experiences or qualities that you want to highlight in your essay. Consider including vivid anecdotes, insightful reflections, and impactful moments that showcase your character and achievements. Remember to be authentic and sincere in your writing, as this will resonate with your audience and make your essay more relatable. By creating a compelling narrative, you can effectively communicate your story and leave a lasting impression on the reader.

Narrative Structure

The narrative structure is crucial when writing an essay about yourself. It helps to create a compelling and engaging story that showcases your unique qualities and experiences. Start by introducing the main theme or message you want to convey in your essay. Then, build a coherent storyline that highlights significant events or moments in your life. Use descriptive language and vivid details to bring your story to life and make it more relatable to the readers. Include a clear beginning, middle, and end to ensure that your essay follows a logical progression and captivates the audience throughout.

Emphasize the lessons you’ve learned from your experiences and how they have shaped your character and outlook on life. Connect these insights to your personal growth and development, demonstrating your resilience, determination, and self-awareness. End your essay on a reflective note, highlighting the impact of your journey on who you are today and what you aspire to achieve in the future. By following a strong narrative structure, you can craft a captivating essay that showcases your authenticity and leaves a lasting impression on the readers.

Highlight Your

When writing an essay about yourself, it is essential to highlight your unique qualities and experiences that set you apart from others. Consider including personal anecdotes, achievements, strengths, and challenges that have shaped your identity. Focus on showcasing your authenticity and individuality to make your essay compelling and engaging.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Being Yourself — The Importance of Self-love

The Importance of Self-love

• Categories: Being Yourself Believe in Myself Finding Yourself

About this sample

Words: 555 |

Updated: 11 December, 2023

Words: 555 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Works Cited

• Baumeister, R. F., & Campbell, J. D. (1999). The Psychology of Self-Esteem: A Revolutionary Approach to Self-Understanding that Launched a New Era in Modern Psychology. Jossey-Bass.
• Branden, N. (1994). The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem: The Definitive Work on Self-Esteem by the Leading Pioneer in the Field. Bantam Books.
• Chaudhary, H., & Kaur, P. (2015). Role of self-esteem in building healthy relationship among adolescents. Indian Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(2), 216-219.
• Crocker, J., & Park, L. E. (2004). The costly pursuit of self-esteem. Psychological Bulletin, 130(3), 392-414.
• Harter, S. (1999). The Construction of the Self: A Developmental Perspective. Guilford Press.
• Heatherton, T. F., & Polivy, J. (1991). Development and validation of a scale for measuring state self-esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60(6), 895-910.
• McKay, M., Fanning, P., & Davis, M. (2007). Self-Esteem: A Proven Program of Cognitive Techniques for Assessing, Improving, and Maintaining Your Self-Esteem. New Harbinger Publications.
• Rosenberg, M. (1965). Society and the Adolescent Self-Image. Princeton University Press.
• Ruffin, J. (2016). Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
• Sowislo, J. F., & Orth, U. (2013). Does low self-esteem predict depression and anxiety? A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 139(1), 213-240.

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I pitched this title. It seemed like a good idea at the time. And now I’m staring at my laptop thinking, “Wait.  Do  I love myself?”

Because I definitely don’t love everything about me. And I don’t walk around with some sort of effortless self-love flowing through my veins. So… WHO AM I TO WRITE THIS ARTICLE?

But, then again, I’ve spent 15 years (and a small fortune on therapy) learning to love myself. My life has transformed because of it. I know what loving myself looks like, I know generally how to do it, and I can honestly say that I show love to myself at least as often as I don’t, which is basically twice as often as I used to. All of that to say, this story is written by a person who’s still on the journey.

But along the way, there are four things I’ve learned about loving myself (so far):

1. I HAVE A SELF.

I know, I know. This might sound annoyingly meta. Or maybe just silly. But, for me, it was a critical thing to learn.

Obviously, I knew I existed. What I didn’t know is where I stopped and someone else started. I knew who I was only in relation to other people—I was a daughter, a friend, a girlfriend; then later, an employee, a wife, etc. Very rarely did I think of myself as just  me .

Plus, I was dangerously unaware of what was actually going on in my half of any given relationship. When asked how I felt, or what I wanted, I’d be at a loss to respond. What did the other person want? That’s what I was good at.

It’s understandable how I got to that point.

I’m wired for relationship. It’s one of my highest values and greatest pleasures. I throw myself in, deeply, and I tend to do almost anything to protect it. If I’m not careful, I can lose my “self” in the process.

On top of this, I grew up in a religious setting that emphasized selflessness. I now understand that this is about living a life of sacrifice. It’s about releasing control to a power greater than yourself. But, somehow, the way I heard “ Be selfless.”  was: “ Have no self .” Which fit right in with the way I’m wired and created an endless spiral of self-obliviousness.

For me, the first step to learning to love myself was learning to notice myself. It was a slow process of peeling my identity away from the others I had glued it to. Over time, I learned:

– I am not my family. – I am not my relationships. – I am not what people think of me. – I am not my failures. – I am not my successes.

I am myself. Regardless.

Which led to my next discovery.

2. MY  SELF  DESERVES LOVE.

I’ll be honest. My default setting toward myself is, at best, tolerance, and, at worst, merciless judgment. Left unchecked, I talk to myself with a toxic combination of scolding-mother and disdainful-teen. ( Why am I so stinkin’ sensitive? Why did I say that dumb thing? How could I possibly lose my cell phone in the house again? Why can’t I keep the bathroom floor clean? Sheesh my hair is ridiculous.)

These voices are so natural and familiar to me that, for a long while, I didn’t realize they existed. But one day, my therapist asked if I would speak to another person the way I talk to myself and I was mortified:  Are you kidding?! Never.

It began to dawn on me how damaging it would be for any person to listen to a never-ending monologue about how incapable, frustrating, dense, unattractive, and abnormal she is. Yet this is what I had subjected myself to for years.

I began to wonder what might happen if I changed that voice.

I starting paying attention to how I talk to the people I love, like my friends and my kids. When the healthy, loving people in my life talked to me, I began to listen more closely. I heard kindness and compassion in those voices. I noticed grace for mistakes and a genuine sense of care. And I started trying, as much as possible, to emulate those voices when talking to myself.

This led to my biggest discovery about loving myself.

3. LOVE ISN’T A FEELING.

Just as is true for anyone else I love, loving myself doesn’t mean I always feel like I’m the most amazing person on the planet. It doesn’t mean I’m completely enamored by everything I do, or everything I am.

Instead… – Love is the voice I choose to speak to myself with. – Love is the way I treat myself. – Love is protecting myself from things and people that aren’t good for me. – Love is surrounding myself with nourishing things. – Love is believing in myself. – Love is never giving up on myself.

Love isn’t a feeling. It’s a choice.

And, miraculously, when that choice is made consistently, sometimes it also becomes a feeling.

4. IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT ME.

So why is this even important? Is self-love just a veiled excuse for selfishness? Is it all just a bunch of self-help baloney? All I can tell you is how it’s mattered in my own life:

Loving myself has prevented me from expecting other people to carry that weight for me. It helps protect me from crushing disappointment when they can’t. It keeps me from settling for things/people/habits that are harmful to me. And loving myself allows me to do a relationship from a full place vs. an empty one.

Most of all though, when I am able to love myself – the person that I have been most judgmental of, the person who annoys me more than anyone else – then I truly am able to love others. And I know how to let them love me.

HOW LOVE LOOKED TODAY

As I’ve been writing this piece, it’s been a challenging few days. My mind has been foggy, my heart heavy, and my body drained. I wasn’t sure why, and I found myself feeling frustrated, willing myself to feel “normal.” Which only left me feeling more discouraged, of course.

Finally  (sometimes it still takes me a minute), I paid attention to what I might actually be needing. I gave myself a nap, took myself on a walk, got myself some deep breaths of fresh air, fed myself some organic beets, cut myself some slack, talked to a friend, and, eventually, realized I’m grieving some things. I pointed out to myself there are some actual real reasons for feeling a little off this week. And I changed the voices in my head from scolding and impatient to soothing and compassionate.

For me, that’s what loving myself looked like today. And I have to say, it helped.

Image sources:  1  /  2

Julie Rybarczyk is a freelance writer, fair-weather blogger, and empty-nester mama who’s living alone and liking it . She’s perpetually the chilliest person in Minneapolis—so most of the year you’ll find her under layers of wool, behind steaming cups of tea. Or on the socials at @shortsandlongs.

BY Julie Rybarczyk - December 4, 2018

Like what you see? Share Wit & Delight with a friend: 

“Love isn’t a feeling, it’s a choice.” This!! So important to remember when it comes to loving yourself as well as anyone else. I realized that with my first love when there were tough times to get through: sometimes you have to decide to love them. And it applies to loving ourselves the same way 🙂

Teresa | outlandishblog.com

very strong essay!

I agree with everything you wrote, but I want to share your advice. Never compare yourself with others, because it always causes a feeling of non-self-sufficiency and self-judgment. Never chase others and strive to be who you are not! You cannot live someone else’s life. Do not try to be like everyone else. Be yourself and go beyond your limits, expand your comfort zone. Who can you compare with? The only person you have to compare yourself with is yourself! I got it from college and my life has improved! Now I work at Write My Essay Online and help …  Read more »

Lovely post and a message to people who are having a hard time with self love, people put on a front and they might seem like they love themselves but in reality and in a horrible place, and this just shines some light on how you can help yourself

Love this article! I wish those people who have committed suicide could read this article once. We are weak inside and that’s the reason we couldn’t survive our lives. We need to start loving ourselves and don’t expect the others. A lot of people live in anxiety which causes health issues and migraine. To come out from this situation we need to learn how to enjoy every second of our life. You can find a lot of blogs on Buy cheap essay sites about self-beliefs.

Yet loving yourself is basic to your self-awareness, to the satisfaction you had always wanted Write My Assignment , and to create healthy, happy relationships with others. Rather than attempting to simply talk yourself into trusting you have self-love.

The blog post is great. The article talks about relationships. You can understand How I Learned to Love Myself by Julie Rybarczyk. There are many things that you are required to do in order to love yourself. Do you know the important things that you should look at to love yourself? The article mentions four things about loving yourself.

It’s amazing. I totally agree with you. Sometimes we forget that we need to love ourselves. And it’s so important to recognize the essential feelings which we must have. Thanks a lot for this piece of writing. By the way, if you need help with writing tasks, you can read more about what I’m doing on https://essays-lab.net/term-paper-writing/ .

Hello everyone, it was interesting to read your article. Usually i’m reading New York Times (it’s here, if u want to check it out https://www.nytimes.com ), but now i’ll read your site too!

Look here https://samedaypaper.org/blog/reflection-paper if you wanna know how to write a reflection paper. You have made some mistakes.

This article is one of the best I have read on this site. I hope many readers will take advantage of your tips and look at themselves with new experiences. I have time for such discussions thanks https://essaysleader.com/essay-about-yourself/

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Essay on Love Yourself

Students are often asked to write an essay on Love Yourself in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Love Yourself

Understanding self-love.

Self-love is the act of appreciating oneself. It’s about accepting who you are, with all your strengths and weaknesses.

Why Love Yourself?

Loving yourself is important because it sets the standard for how others treat you. It helps you make healthy choices and fosters positive relationships.

How to Love Yourself

Start by accepting your flaws. Next, celebrate your accomplishments, no matter how small. Lastly, take care of your physical health, as it is linked to your mental wellbeing.

Remember, self-love is a journey, not a destination. It takes time, patience, and practice.

250 Words Essay on Love Yourself

Introduction.

The concept of self-love, often overshadowed by societal norms and expectations, is a fundamental aspect of personal growth and mental wellbeing. It is an essential journey of understanding and accepting oneself, promoting inner peace and happiness.

Understanding Self-Love

Self-love is not merely about pampering oneself or being selfish; it is about acknowledging our strengths and weaknesses, understanding our emotions, and accepting our imperfections. It is the recognition that our worth is not defined by external validation but by our own self-perception.

The Importance of Self-Love

Self-love is the foundation of self-esteem and self-confidence. It enables us to establish healthy boundaries and relationships, make decisions that align with our well-being, and cultivate resilience against adversity. It acts as a shield, protecting us from negative influences and fostering a positive mindset.

Practicing Self-Love

Practicing self-love involves self-care, self-compassion, and self-acceptance. It requires us to prioritize our mental and physical health, forgive ourselves for our mistakes, and celebrate our achievements. It is an ongoing process of personal growth and self-improvement.

In conclusion, self-love is a powerful tool for personal development and mental health. It empowers us to live authentically, with integrity and respect for our own needs and desires. By loving ourselves, we not only enhance our own lives but also contribute positively to the world around us.

500 Words Essay on Love Yourself

The concept of self-love is not just a trendy buzzword, but a fundamental aspect of our mental and emotional wellbeing. As college students, we are often bombarded with academic pressures, social expectations, and the daunting task of defining our identities. Amidst these challenges, learning to love ourselves becomes an essential survival tool.

The Notion of Self-Love

Self-love is an appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological, and spiritual growth. It is dynamic and involves self-care, self-compassion, and maintaining a positive self-image. It’s about acknowledging our strengths and weaknesses, and understanding that they do not define our worth.

Why Self-Love Matters?

Developing a healthy relationship with oneself sets the tone for all other relationships. When we love ourselves, we set boundaries that prevent others from treating us poorly. Moreover, self-love fosters mental resilience, allowing us to bounce back from failures and disappointments. It cultivates an inner strength that helps us navigate the challenges of life with equanimity.

Self-Love and Mental Health

Self-love is a potent antidote to a range of mental health issues prevalent among college students. It can help mitigate stress, anxiety, and depression by promoting a positive self-image and boosting self-esteem. By cherishing ourselves, we can nurture our mental health, fostering a sense of inner peace and contentment.

Practicing self-love is not about being narcissistic or self-absorbed. It’s about acknowledging our needs and taking the time to meet them. This can be as simple as taking care of our physical health, setting aside time for relaxation, or pursuing hobbies that we enjoy. It also involves challenging negative self-talk and replacing it with positive affirmations.

Self-Love: A Journey, Not a Destination

It’s important to remember that self-love is a journey, not a destination. It’s a continuous process that requires regular practice and patience. There will be times when we falter, succumbing to self-doubt and criticism. However, it’s crucial to treat these moments as opportunities for growth rather than signs of failure.

In conclusion, self-love is a critical aspect of our overall wellbeing. As college students, it’s essential that we learn to value ourselves and cultivate a positive relationship with ourselves. By doing so, we can not only enhance our mental health but also improve our relationships with others. Remember, the journey to self-love begins with a single step: the decision to prioritize ourselves and our needs. It’s a journey well worth taking.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

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15 Tips for Writing a College Essay About Yourself

What’s covered:.

• What is the Purpose of the College Essay?
• How to Stand Out Without Showing Off
• 15 Tips for Writing an Essay About Yourself
• Where to Get Free Feedback on Your Essay

Most students who apply to top-tier colleges have exceptional grades, standardized test scores, and extracurricular activities. How do admissions officers decide which applicants to choose among all these stellar students? One way is on the strength of their college essay .

This personal statement, along with other qualitative factors like teacher recommendations, helps the admissions committee see who you really are—the person behind the transcript. So, it’s obviously important to write a great one.

What Is the Purpose of the College Essay? 

Your college essay helps you stand out in a pool of qualified candidates. If effective, it will also show the admissions committee more of your personality and allow them to get a sense of how you’ll fit in with and contribute to the student body and institution. Additionally, it will show the school that you can express yourself persuasively and clearly in writing, which is an important part of most careers, no matter where you end up. 

Typically, students must submit a personal statement (usually the Common App essay ) along with school-specific supplements. Some students are surprised to learn that essays typically count for around 25% of your entire application at the top 250 schools. That’s an enormous chunk, especially considering that, unlike your transcript and extracurriculars, it isn’t an assessment of your entire high school career.  

The purpose of the college essay is to paint a complete picture of yourself, showing admissions committees the person behind the grades and test scores. A strong college essay shows your unique experiences, personality, perspective, interests, and values—ultimately, what makes you unique. After all, people attend college, not their grades or test scores. The college essay also provides students with a considerable amount of agency in their application, empowering them to share their own stories.

How to Stand Out Without Showing Off 

It’s important to strike a balance between exploring your achievements and demonstrating humility. Your aim should be to focus on the meaning behind the experience and how it changed your outlook, not the accomplishment itself. 

Confidence without cockiness is the key here. Don’t simply catalog your achievements, there are other areas on your application to share them. Rather, mention your achievements when they’re critical to the story you’re telling. It’s helpful to think of achievements as compliments, not highlights, of your college essay.  

Take this essay excerpt , for example:

My parents’ separation allowed me the space to explore my own strengths and interests as each of them became individually busier. As early as middle school, I was riding the light rail train by myself, reading maps to get myself home, and applying to special academic programs without urging from my parents. Even as I took more initiatives on my own, my parents both continued to see me as somewhat immature. All of that changed three years ago, when I applied and was accepted to the SNYI-L summer exchange program in Morocco. I would be studying Arabic and learning my way around the city of Marrakesh. Although I think my parents were a little surprised when I told them my news, the addition of a fully-funded scholarship convinced them to let me go. 

Instead of saying “ I received this scholarship and participated in this prestigious program, ” the author tells a story, demonstrating their growth and initiative through specific actions (riding the train alone, applying academic programs on her own, etc.)—effectively showing rather than telling.

15 Tips for Writing an Essay About Yourself 

1. start early .

Leave yourself plenty of time to write your college essay—it’s stressful enough to compose a compelling essay without putting yourself under a deadline. Starting early on your essay also leaves you time to edit and refine your work, have others read your work (for example, your parents or a teacher), and carefully proofread.

2. Choose a topic that’s meaningful to you 

The foundation of a great essay is selecting a topic that has real meaning for you. If you’re passionate about the subject, the reader will feel it. Alternatively, choosing a topic you think the admissions committee is looking for, but isn’t all that important to you, won’t make for a compelling essay; it will be obvious that you’re not very invested in it.

3. Show your personality 

One of the main points of your college essay is to convey your personality. Admissions officers will see your transcript and read about the awards you’ve won, but the essay will help them get to know you as a person. Make sure your personality is evident in each part—if you are a jokester, incorporate some humor. Your friends should be able to pick your essay from an anonymous pile, read it, and recognize it as yours. In that same vein, someone who doesn’t know you at all should feel like they understand your personality after reading your essay. 

4. Write in your own voice 

In order to bring authenticity to your essay, you’ll need to write in your own voice. Don’t be overly formal (but don’t be too casual, either). Remember: you want the reader to get to know the real you, not a version of you that comes across as overly stiff or stilted. You should feel free to use contractions, incorporate dialogue, and employ vocabulary that comes naturally to you. 

5. Use specific examples 

Real, concrete stories and examples will help your essay come to life. They’ll add color to your narrative and make it more compelling for the reader. The goal, after all, is to engage your audience—the admissions committee. 

For example, instead of stating that you care about animals, you should tell us a story about how you took care of an injured stray cat. 

Consider this side-by-side comparison:

Example 1: I care deeply about animals and even once rescued a stray cat. The cat had an injured leg, and I helped nurse it back to health.

Example 2: I lost many nights of sleep trying to nurse the stray cat back to health. Its leg infection was extremely painful, and it meowed in distress up until the wee hours of the morning. I didn’t mind it though; what mattered was that the cat regained its strength. So, I stayed awake to administer its medicine and soothe it with loving ear rubs.

The second example helps us visualize this situation and is more illustrative of the writer’s personality. Because she stayed awake to care for the cat, we can infer that she is a compassionate person who cares about animals. We don’t get the same depth with the first example. 

6. Don’t be afraid to show off… 

You should always put your best foot forward—the whole point of your essay is to market yourself to colleges. This isn’t the time to be shy about your accomplishments, skills, or qualities. 

7. …While also maintaining humility 

But don’t brag. Demonstrate humility when discussing your achievements. In the example above, for instance, the author discusses her accomplishments while noting that her parents thought of her as immature. This is a great way to show humility while still highlighting that she was able to prove her parents wrong.

8. Be vulnerable 

Vulnerability goes hand in hand with humility and authenticity. Don’t shy away from exploring how your experience affected you and the feelings you experienced. This, too, will help your story come to life. 

Here’s an excerpt from a Common App essay that demonstrates vulnerability and allows us to connect with the writer:  

“You ruined my life!” After months of quiet anger, my brother finally confronted me. To my shame, I had been appallingly ignorant of his pain. 

Despite being twins, Max and I are profoundly different. Having intellectual interests from a young age that, well, interested very few of my peers, I often felt out of step in comparison with my highly-social brother. Everything appeared to come effortlessly for Max and, while we share an extremely tight bond, his frequent time away with friends left me feeling more and more alone as we grew older.

In this essay, the writer isn’t afraid to share his insecurities and feelings with us. He states that he had been “ appallingly ignorant ” of his brother’s pain, that he “ often felt out of step ” compared to his brother, and that he had felt “ more and more alone ” over time. These are all emotions that you may not necessarily share with someone you just met, but it’s exactly this vulnerability that makes the essay more raw and relatable. 

9. Don’t lie or hyperbolize 

This essay is about the authentic you. Lying or hyperbolizing to make yourself sound better will not only make your essay—and entire application—less genuine, but it will also weaken it. More than likely, it will be obvious that you’re exaggerating. Plus, if colleges later find out that you haven’t been truthful in any part of your application, it’s grounds for revoking your acceptance or even expulsion if you’ve already matriculated. 

10. Avoid cliches 

How the COVID-19 pandemic changed your life. A sports victory as a metaphor for your journey. How a pet death altered your entire outlook. Admissions officers have seen more essays on these topics than they can possibly count. Unless you have a truly unique angle, then it’s in your best interest to avoid them. Learn which topics are cliche and how to fix them . 

11. Proofread 

This is a critical step. Even a small error can break your essay, however amazing it is otherwise. Make sure you read it over carefully, and get another set of eyes (or two or three other sets of eyes), just in case.

12. Abstain from using AI

There are a handful of good reasons to avoid using artificial intelligence (AI) to write your college essay. Most importantly, it’s dishonest and likely to be not very good; AI-generated essays are generally formulaic, generic, and boring—everything you’re trying to avoid being.   The purpose of the college essay is to share what makes you unique and highlight your personal experiences and perspectives, something that AI can’t capture.

13. Use parents as advisors, not editors

The voice of an adult is different from that of a high schooler and admissions committees are experts at spotting the writing of parents. Parents can play a valuable role in creating your college essay—advising, proofreading, and providing encouragement during those stressful moments. However, they should not write or edit your college essay with their words.

14. Have a hook

Admissions committees have a lot of essays to read and getting their attention is essential for standing out among a crowded field of applicants. A great hook captures your reader’s imagination and encourages them to keep reading your essay. Start strong, first impressions are everything!

15. Give them something to remember

The ending of your college essay is just as important as the beginning. Give your reader something to remember by composing an engaging and punchy paragraph or line—called a kicker in journalism—that ties everything you’ve written above together.

Where to Get Free Feedback on Your College Essay 

Before you send off your application, make sure you get feedback from a trusted source on your essay. CollegeVine’s free peer essay review will give you the support you need to ensure you’ve effectively presented your personality and accomplishments. Our expert essay review pairs you with an advisor to help you refine your writing, submit your best work, and boost your chances of getting into your dream school. Find the right advisor for you and get started on honing a winning essay.

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The Importance of Self-Love and Self-Acceptance

Symptoms of not loving yourself.

• Depending on other people to make you happy. People who don’t love themselves cannot be happy with themselves. They’ll try micromanaging and controlling other people to feel better about themselves. In short, they are energy vampires.
• Constantly justifying yourself. People who don’t love themselves the way they are, focus on their good traits and boast so that the people around them can agree with them. They try to get anyone who is listening to believe in what they are saying even if deep down they don’t believe in it themselves. Remember, true love is never boastful. Anytime you see a boastful person, you see someone who doubts himself or herself.
• Indecisive because they want to seek approval or they want people to react to their choices. In short, they crave the attention and respect of others.
• Bad things happen to them all the time and they just can’t figure it out. They complain and blame others for their misfortunes while forgetting that how they feel about themselves determines what happens to them.
• Always preoccupied with personal problems because their mindset is structured around themselves. They tend to judge themselves harshly because they think everyone is talking about them.
• Keep going back to the people who dislike them or things that hurt them because they want to prove that they are worthy even if deep inside they know it’s impossible.

Symptoms of not accepting yourself

• Criticizing and judging ourselves harshly will manifest in all manners of physical, mental and emotional health issues. It’s important to know the symptoms that show you don’t love and accept yourself so that you can fix them as soon as possible.
• Denying who you are results in low self-esteem. People who push themselves to think and act like someone else feel like they are living a lie because it’s not a life of their own making. Denying who you are also involves ignoring your inner voice which always tells you to be who you are. The result? You’ll be stressed, overwhelmed and angry at yourself.
• Developing a victim mentality which involves believing what other people say about you or seeking approval. At the end of the day, you serve someone else’s agenda; not your own.
• Failure to accept yourself will eventually lead to low self-confidence because you won’t trust yourself. Soon you’ll start pitying and hating yourself and this will prevent your growth and development.
• Lack of self-acceptance leads to inactivity because you’ll lack the ability to inspire and motivate yourself to do the things that are good for you such as sleeping properly, eating nutritious foods and exercising regularly.

Self-Love vs Self-Acceptance

Determinants of self-acceptance, tips that will help you practice self-love and self-acceptance.

• Focus on yourself – Instead of looking at other people and working hard to be like them, you should focus on yourself. This means setting your standards and metrics to measure your success. Remember, loving yourself is not selfish. You cannot expect to love others if you don’t love yourself. To enhance other peoples’ wellbeing, you need to look after yourself by taking care of your physical and mental health. Don’t be afraid to focus and put yourself first.
• Get rid of the need to change yourself – You need to accept yourself with all your strengths and weaknesses. Instead of trying so hard to change yourself or chase butterflies, you can just drop everything and realize that you already have everything you need to become successful. Any change or adjustments will happen effortlessly just like a flower blooms. You don’t have to change yourself because there’s no other person in the world like you. You are a unique and special individual.
• Confront your fears – Devastating things happen to all of us. We all have baggage that prevents us from trying something new and hurting ourselves. The fear of failure holds us back from realizing our potential. Most people are afraid of the unfamiliar that they find themselves stuck in their comfort zones. When making changes and adjustments, it’s important to take baby steps to avoid freaking yourself out. Start by creating a list of the things you’ve been afraid to do. It could be networking at a key event, approaching your crush or asking your boss for a raise. Start with something small and face it. Figure out why you fear to do it. A big victory is made up of many small victories.
• Surround yourself with positive people – Your company will determine how high you go in your personal and professional life. Surrounding yourself with negative people cannot make you a positive person. Feeding your mind, the world’s worst won’t lighten up your inner world. Therefore, it’s important to choose your company carefully. Associate with positive people who will help you confront your fears. Apart from that, focus on the positive aspects of life. Remember, your mind is like a piece of land. When you take your time to cultivate it, it will bring forth sweet fruits. If you don’t cultivate it, weeds will grow naturally. And once they take over, it will be very difficult to eliminate them.
• Don’t take things personally – If someone or something offends you, don’t take it personally. Don’t assume that you know what people mean. Stop defending or justifying yourself. When you stop taking things personally, you’ll realize that people are doing their best to make things work. Plus, they might be having a bad day which is not your fault.
• Forgive yourself and others – You cannot grow and prosper without forgiving yourself and others. Remember, forgiveness is a selfish act. You forgive others so that you can have enough energy to focus on your growth and improvement. Forgive yourself for the mistakes you’ve made. No one is perfect. Being too hard on yourself or others cannot accelerate your success.
• Focus on your progress – Forget about the ideal. Perfection will not take you to the next level. When you focus on your progress, you’ll eventually become successful. Keep in mind that there will always be room for improvement no matter how well you do something.
• Don’t give up – When you fall, you have to get up and keep on keeping on. When we fail, we learn more about ourselves than when we succeed. Figure out what needs to be done and just do it. At the end of the day, celebrate for having the courage to go after what you want.

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Learning to Love Yourself

By Jaclyn Durnil, MSW – Dec. 3, 2019

“If you can learn to love yourself and all the flaws, you can love other people so much better. And that makes you so happy.” – Kristen Chenowith

Why is it so difficult to love ourselves? Basically, the short answer to this question is that we were raised in a society that didn’t teach us about self-love. This may not seem very important to some, but self-love is one of the best things you can do for yourself.

Loving yourself provides you with self-confidence, self-worth, and in general, you feel more positive. If you can learn to love yourself, you will feel happier and will learn to take better care of yourself.

Looking in the mirror, most of us see a lot of different flaws and remember too many past experiences and failings to love ourselves. The less you love yourself, listen to yourself, and understand yourself, the more confused, upset, and frustrated you will be in life. When you begin to love yourself and continue to love yourself more and more each day, things slowly will be a little bit better in every way possible.

Unfortunately, self-love isn’t always easy. 

Accepting the pain and allowing yourself to be honest with who you are is a big step to loving yourself. Forgive yourself for past actions and things you are ashamed of doing.

Carrying a lot of negative emotions like jealousy, disgust, and rage can have a negative impact. We need to learn how to accept not only the emotions that create love, joy, and happiness but also the ones that cause fear, insecurity, and anger in our lives.

While we need to learn how to acknowledge and accept the pain with the love, another step is reconciling with a cold and unopened heart. Asking yourself if you fully love yourself can be very difficult because you must accept your flaws and faults.

Love is something we choose, the same way we choose anger, hate, or sadness. We have the power to forgive someone who has hurt us in the past. We can learn to finally heal from something when we can forgive. We can always choose love.

Learning to love yourself leads to better self-care. Examples of this could be taking a break from time to time and accepting that no one is perfect and things happen.

Another example could be saying no to others when you really don’t have the time or energy to say yes. We often do too much for other people because we want to please everyone. We can forget to look after ourselves and then we become overwhelmed.

Today is the day you can love yourself completely with no expectations. Making the choice right now to choose your own love is the most powerful healing force you have.

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Looking in the Mirror: My Journey to Self-Love

A few months ago, for the first time in a very, very long time, I looked at myself in the mirror for more than a couple of minutes. I used to cry every time I saw my reflection, so I figured that it would be best for me if I just stopped looking. Every time I looked at my body, all I saw were my flaws. All I saw were the stretch marks I despised, the scars I longed to cover, the features I could never change.

Honestly, I probably never would have thought to try to learn how to love myself again, if it hadn’t been for my mom. One day, she asked me a very simple question, and yet this question managed to haunt me for months: “What is one thing you like about yourself?” I stayed up night after night, waiting for an answer to magically reveal itself. I realized that I could list a million things about myself that I disliked, things I so desperately wanted to change, but I couldn’t name a single thing about myself that I appreciated. I was really disappointed in myself. Was there not even a single thing that was lovable about me?

I thought about this question for five months straight before I found an answer. I was looking at my hands during class one day, and I realized that I liked the way my left wrist looked when I tilted it a certain way. When I got home that day, I rushed to my room and started a new page in my diary, titled “Things I Like About Myself”, and immediately added my discovery to my list. I was proud of my teeny, tiny list, and to my surprise, it grew faster than I ever could have imagined. Day after day, I found myself returning to my list and adding new traits and characteristics of mine that I took pride in; I started to love my eyes, my bravery, my stomach, my curiosity, my compassion, my wrists (both of them!!).

It hasn’t been an easy journey, and I’ll admit, sometimes it is a very, very difficult thing to do to look at yourself and see a person who deserves love- specifically, your own love. If you are someone who is struggling with your insecurities, I want you to know that you are not alone. But as much as I can tell you that you are beautiful (which you definitely are, you cutie!!!), I can’t force you to believe it. That’s up to you. That’s your choice, but I’m here telling you that you deserve to be loved by someone as amazing as yourself. You are beautiful; this I promise you.

One day, I hope to love every part of me. And every day, I work very hard to bring myself closer to that goal. Every day, I make an active choice to look in the mirror and see someone I love in its reflection.

I challenge you to do the same. Look in the mirror and don’t look away.

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Home / Essay Samples / Life / Personal Beliefs / The Importance Of Loving Yourself

The Importance Of Loving Yourself

• Category: Life
• Topic: Finding Yourself , Personal Beliefs , Self Esteem

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