FENG SHUI YOURSELF – OUTSIDE IN!  Part III
By Lori Dawn

Being in the beauty industry for 18 years, I have seen many different people with many different shapes, sizes and looks.  The one thing in common for both men and women clients is that there is always something they don’t like about their physical appearance.  It is amazing to me to see truly beautiful people discontented in their own minds about a perceived lack in their physical attributes.

The third and final part of Feng Shui Yourself Head to Toe is about this very topic!  We’ve touched on hair, face shape, moving into clothes you wear and what you want your total look to say about you.  The thread that pulls it all together is loving what you see.  Sure, we all want to change things about ourselves.  I could be beautiful if…  If what?  If you had the “Barbie” surgeries, you’ll love yourself then?

What if you learned to love your body just the way it is now?  It doesn’t mean that you can’t change later, but if you learn to love what you have, you start becoming who you are meant to be.  You have your own uniqueness to bring into the world.  After all, you are unique – an individual from head to toe!  Celebrate that! 

* What would it feel like if you were comfortable in your body right now?
* What would be freed up for you?
* What’s stopping you from loving the way you look?

We get so caught up with media images.  We assume that people we perceive as beautiful love the way they look – because we love the way they look.  We’re told they are among the top 100 most beautiful people in the world.  I dare say, if you asked them – the celebs – they don’t like certain things about their looks or bodies either!  Could it be they have something they’d like to change too?

I say all of this because I’ve seen it time and time again.  The most beautiful people sit in my chair – and some won’t even look at their own face in the mirror!  Why?  They deem themselves to be anything but beautiful.  It is all just perception.  Our perception of ourselves is usually not how others perceive us.  Our minds can be deceptive when we judge ourselves.  Be very careful with that.

How do I start feeling great about my looks?  I’m so glad you asked!  Here are some simple, tried and true tests that can work if you really understand how to implement them.

1. Understand and practice gratitude.  Be grateful for the part you perceive as a negative.  For example, you think your nose isn’t as perfect as you’d like it to be.  Start having a different conversation about your nose.  Be grateful for it!  Have gratitude about it – instead of having a negative conversation.

2. Powerfully accept a compliment.  When given a compliment, do you find yourself saying, “That’s not true!” and justifying the compliment – or simply shrugging it off?  We often don’t receive compliments well because of our own insecurities.  Once again, it is our perception vs. theirs.  So, the next time you get a compliment – smile, look the person giving you the compliment in the eye and say, “Thank You!” – and ONLY “Thank you!”

3. Tell yourself daily, “I love the way I look right now!”  I realize some of you may be in overload with merely the thought.  The thought of saying this makes you want to run out of the room.  But trust me on this one, you don’t believe what others say, so you have to start getting used to hearing it.  It starts with you.  Stand in front of the mirror morning, noon and night and take a look at your beautiful outer self and say loud and proud, “I love the way I look right now.  I love my beautiful [nose, tummy, arms, whatever].  I am beautiful just the way I am.”

This is simply the tip of the iceberg.  Once you start implementing these tips, you’ll see yourself in a beautiful new light.  Now, your mission – should you choose to accept it – is to do a check.  Are you in balance?  Does your hair match your face shape and personality?  What do your clothes say about your overall appearance?  Do you love the way you look right now?

I hope you have enjoyed the Feng Shui Yourself series – but more than that, I hope it has helped you enjoy yourself more!  YOU are the only you there is.  There will never be another YOU created – so express yourself more, enjoy yourself more and share yourself more!

For further information, please contact Lori Dawn – hairdresser, image consultant, body- image tele-seminar/workshop facilitator.  The Beauty Studio, Temecula ~ 951.302.4800