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Presented by Melody Godfred, The Self Love Philosopher and Author of Self Love Poetry at Simon & Schuster
A self love philosopher, poet, and author, readers have called Melody Godfred’s work life-changing pandemic medicine and part of their everyday ritual.
She started her career as a litigation attorney, and soon founded Write in Color, a full-service resume and career development company that helped transform the careers of hundreds of women.
In 2016, Melody invited women to wear the Self Love Pinky Ring and make a pinky promise to choose themselves. Within just six months, the self love movement had spread across the globe, with women in over 40 countries saying yes to themselves.
What started with a ring became a global self love movement with her company Fred and Far. Through Fred and Far, she began writing poetry to inspire moments of self-awareness, love, and care, which gave rise to the collection ‘Self Love Poetry: For Thinkers & Feelers.
Melody Godfred was kind enough to join the Within Health Summit to present her recent work, “The ABCs of Self Love,” and the importance of living as your authentic self.
“Self love is a daily commitment to honor your authentic self.”
Self love can have different meanings to different people, but essentially it means having a high regard for your own well-being and joy. It can mean putting yourself first and not settling for less than you deserve.
The cycle of self love has four main steps:
Each person experiences a duality between their ego-driven self and their essence-driven self. Our ego-driven self is typically fueled by external validation and the quest to meet society’s expectations. Our essence-driven self is fueled by internal validation and sees achievement as simply being your authentic self.
“True growth is not born of moving on a linear timeline but of going deeper within and getting closer to your authentic self.”
‘The ABCs of Self Love’ is a self-guided journal that features a unique blend of inspiration, education, and action to make self love part of your daily life. There is a lesson to learn with each letter of the alphabet. The beautifully illustrated self love workbook uses real-life examples, poetry, and journal prompts to take you on a journey of self-discovery.
You’ll learn foundational self love concepts, including authenticity, forgiveness, boundaries, and progress over perfection. Plus, ‘The ABCs of Self Love’ will help show you how to let go of shame, self-doubt, and regret, so you can love yourself as you are.
Take a look at some of the ABCs from ‘The ABCs of Self Love’ and some of the book's key messages.
“When you stand naked before yourself stripped of guilt and shame, expectations and regrets, the person you will see before you is your authentic self.”
Your authentic self never leaves you; it’s always with you. One of Melody’s favorite ways to stay connected to the authentic self is to use a childhood picture as your phone or computer background image. Every time you see the smiling, carefree picture of yourself, you’ll be reminded of your authentic self.
There are four ways you can honor your authentic self daily. Practice these methods, and over time they will become an instinctual part of your daily life.
‘Q’ is for question negativity
“I’m made of trillions of cells. I’m done letting one negative thought make all of them suffer.”
You can choose your own thoughts. You don’t need to let your one negative thought overrule all of the others. Remove the things from your life that inspire negativity, be it a person with a toxic influence or social media profiles that make you feel less than.
‘E’ is for emotional empowerment
“All the ways we try to avoid our pain when the only way through is to feel it.”
The feelings wheel is a simple yet effective tool for helping you to understand why you feel the way you do by discovering the root cause of your emotions. Or you can use the feelings wheel to inspire emotions in yourself, e.g., if you want to feel joy, you could try doing something daring, or if you want to feel powerful, you could do an activity that makes you feel worthwhile.
‘D’ is for daily dream
“Dreams only come true if you have them.”
Dreaming is a way to connect and honor your authentic self. Your ego-driven has what it needs with your to-do list, but your essence needs sustenance too. Dreaming is like a to-do list for your essence, so remember to make time in your day to dream. Write down your dreams in a journal as a reminder of all the things you want to do that will bring you joy.
‘I’ is for intuition
“Intuition is the voice of your authentic self.”
What is intuition? Melody sees intuition as a deep knowing from your essence, which emerges when you eliminate the things that get in its way.
Everyone has an intuition, but in some people, it can be quiet, but there are ways to wake it up, including:
“When I can’t move my mind, I move my body. When I can’t move my body, I move my mind. Either way, movement heals.”
Years of evidence have demonstrated how good movement is for your mental health. If you’re not one for traditional exercise, you might find that music fuels your movement. Create a ‘Happy Thoughts’ playlist to help you get out of your head and into your body. Music and movement help you to live in the moment, activating your intuition.
“You are the only you who will ever exist. One of one. Without a single replica, past, present, or future. This is no accident.”
Your narrative is your story, the story you were born to tell, the reason why you are here. So, you’re probably thinking, if we are here for a reason, what about nurture? According to Melody’s book, your authentic self is not about nurture or nature. It’s about recognizing who you are, learning why you’re here, and creating a life that aligns with who you are rather than in opposition.
Nurture your nature through self love and self care, and live up to your purpose and values. As you learn to love who you are, remember, “I am not for everyone. I am for me.”
“Boundaries aren’t about what you say no to. They’re about what you make space for.”
Boundaries are not always about saying no; they are more about making space for yourself and understanding your self-worth so you can say “yes” on your terms.
One place where boundaries come in particularly useful is with social media. Make social media a safer place for yourself by unfollowing the social media accounts that inspire negative thoughts and emotions.
Plus, when you engage with uplifting content that makes you feel good, social media algorithms will show you more of the same, flooding your feeds with positivity and joy.
Self love is such a wonderful thing. It empowers you to:
“Do you dare to get vulnerable enough to tolerate joy, or are you merely dress-rehearsing tragedy?” - Brené Brown
One of the key rewards for loving yourself is allowing joy into your life and experiencing real joy every day.
Although “happiness” and “joy” are used interchangeably, they are not exactly the same. Happiness is usually fleeting, circumstantial, and everchanging. It’s typically achievement-based, safe, and derived from the external. By contrast, joy is foundational, deep, and consistent. It is worth-based, brave, and derived internally.
One method Melody shares for bringing joy into your life is creating a Joy List. Every time you feel a “ping” of happiness—big or small—write it down on your joy list. When you feel a little flat and need a boost, read from your Joy List to return to that youthful mindset. With a Joy List, your Joy is always waiting for you.
The ABCs of Self Love and Melody Godfred’s other works are available wherever good books are sold.