This week, I wanted to take a moment to talk about the importance of self-love. It’s a topic we see all over social media on a daily basis. However, when it comes down to it, self-love is easier said than done. I think we all have people in our lives who tell us what we should or shouldn’t do, or what they think would make us happier. One of the things I’ve been learning a lot recently, is how important it is to shut out other’s opinions of you.

I was in college the first time anyone ever said anything to me about what I looked like. A professor actually told me that if I ever wanted to be cast in anything, I needed to “go to the gym and put on some weight.” I’ve been tiny my entire life, so the idea that my body was an issue never occurred to me. I’ve always tried to eat healthy and get regular exercise, so what could possibly be the problem? As I started to branch out into the theatre world, I realized that there would always be someone with something to say.

It’s especially hard for us as women to find positive things to say about ourselves. We are held to a much different standard than men are. Especially when it comes to the theatre world, men are often handed roles because casting directors always need more men; they have a plethora of women to choose from. Even outside of the theatre world, women are always told how they should act; being assertive means they’re “bossy” and being reserved means they’re “weak.” At the end of the day, why does it matter what other people are saying or doing, as long as it makes them happy?

The bottom line is, it isn’t our job to tell another person what they should or shouldn’t be doing. We are all entitled to live our lives to the fullest, and do what makes us happy. For women in particular, it is so important to build each other up, not tear each other down. So, the moral of this blog is this; LOVE YOURSELF. OWN WHO YOU ARE. AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR WHO YOU ARE!