To the girl who doesn’t think she’s enough,

I get it.

This society is constantly putting everyone in competition with each other. Constantly raising the bar, and making it more than impossible to reach it with our sanity and personalities intact.

I’ve struggled with the feelings that you’re not enough. The feelings that tell you that you’re not smart enough, pretty enough, funny enough, thin enough, anything enough. And they’re wrong.

You are enough, you’re more than enough. And you have always been enough. You are an incredible, perfect, deserving human being.

The simple, cliché truth is that we value ourselves based on how we compare to others.

So, the simple, cliché solution is to stop the comparisons. And I know that’s easier said than done. It needs to stop.

Tip #1: Remember that are good enough to be yourself, and your individuality is a blessing to the universe.

When you look in the mirror, don’t compare every detail about who you are to someone else. When you look in the mirror, see the beautiful, incredible, deserving person that you are. You are not the same person as anyone else, you’re you. There is only one you in this entire world, and that you deserves to be seen, and known, and loved. But, for that to happen, you need to see, and know, and love yourself. You’re not going to be like anyone else, and that’s not a bad thing at all, it’s actually a blessing to be an individual because being an individual means that you bring something to this world that no one has brought before, and no one will bring again. And that would be a waste to lose.

Tip #2: A grade is just a number, and it has no say in how intelligent or competent you are. As long as you are working to improve and get to where you want to be in 20 years, you are doing more than enough.

When you don’t get an A on an exam or in a class, remember that your grades don’t define you. Your GPA doesn’t tell anything about how hard you’ve worked, or how much you’ve grown as a person. Being human is defined as being imperfect, and so knowing 70% of a given set of information is actually really good. Being human means being imperfect, and as long as you are learning from your mistakes and growing, you’re doing really well for yourself, and I’m proud of you.

Tip #3: Your body is incredible, and beautiful, and has always been and will always be, good enough.

You are beautiful. Every inch of you, without exception, is beautiful. Part of knowing yourself and loving yourself is embracing you for every perceived flaw. Learn to love it all, the love handles, the thighs that touch (or don’t), the scars, the size of breasts, everything. Your body is flawless, just the way it is. If you want to change it, don’t do it for affection or for society, do it for yourself, and do it the right way, the healthy way. You deserve to love and be loved for every inch of your beautiful, miraculous body.

In summary, you are incredible. You are beautiful, strong, independent, capable, and perfect just the way you are. You are more than good enough. Believe in that, every day.

Love always,

The girl working on believing that she is good enough