With Reason

Inner beauty: Cliche? Maybe. Legit? Definitely maybe.

There’s a reason the concept of inner beauty is so common and so talked about. And the reason is that despite it’s seemingly simplistic nature, beauty isit’s seriously a thing. You don’t have to take it just from me, either; a number of celebrities speak out very often on their agreement with the concept, one of the most recent being Emilia Clarke.

In a Marie Claire article, Emilia speaks out about beauty that she finds outside of the cosmetic aisle. In fact, she is a believer in sticking to the absolute basics, reminding us: that

"It's a powerful point of view when you know you don’t need anything to enhance your natural beauty.”

There’s a lot to be said about the confidence that comes from something other than the makeup or clothes you’re wearing. Makeup can be fun, yes, but what good does it do if you don’t feel good on the inside? The real glow comes from how you feel, and how you let that spill out. It’s a great thought that your smile can be just as warm with or without it being lined with satin lipstick, and your eyes can light up the same whether or not they’re layered with glitter.

I know I am not alone in the thought that I feel my best when I have myself somewhat internally put-together. When all my boxes are checked and I feel grounded and balanced, I can be my best self. And the thing is, this isn’t just a feeling… it’s noticeable, too. When you feel better, you look better. Simple as that.

I’m a firm believer in creating organization for yourself to thrive within. Color inside the lines, but spend just as much time and apply just as much creativity when creating the borders as you do filling them in. Draw the borders for how you want to feel on the inside, and watch how beautifully the space fills itself in.

Within structure, you can be your most beautiful self. In other words, take care of your physical needs, of course, but consider that the outline of your beauty, with all the good color coming from good stuff on the inside.

With Action

It’s becoming more and more known and widespread that mental health is equally as important as physical health, if not more. Emilia Clarke reminds us of this when she says:

“I really, truly believe that natural beauty comes from a feeling in your mind that you are happy, which is no small feat."

And she’s right, it’s no small feat. The magnitude of the job to be done, however, justifies the notion that the internal work matters. The bigger the feat, the bigger the results. The inner work you do will translate into inner beauty, which will translate into outer beauty.

~ Inner work → inner beauty → genuine outer beauty ~

It’s like taking an extra step back in order to take an extra step forward.

Take care of the inside… maybe even more than you take care of the outside.

If you think about it, we have a gold mine inside us that is our inner beauty, and all we have to do is give it the space to shine through.

Just like you would brush your teeth and put on moisturizer before bed every night without fail, check up on your heart and your mind, and do some things that would give them both a little boost as well.

For me personally, this looks like giving whatever it is I’m feeling plenty of space to be what it is. If I’m feeling upset or sad, then I’ll let that emotion come to its most full expression, and then understand that where the space was to hold that sadness, happiness can also fill the same outline. If I’m feeling overwhelmed or stressed, then I’ll keep myself accountable by setting goals for myself and getting tasks taken care of so that the stress has no reason to continue on.

These actions are manifesting internal beauty, just like outward actions manifest external beauty. With a beautiful heart and mind, eventually the dots will connect themselves.

A great place to start is mindfulness and acceptance of yourself and emotions. Meditation can help significantly. The best source of guided meditations I’ve found is Headspace, which is available for free on the App Store. Additionally, journaling absolutely works wonders. I cannot stress this enough. Pouring your thoughts and feelings out onto paper can take power away from things you no longer want and simultaneously give power to things you want to enhance. To lay out what’s on your mind and get honest with yourself is one of the most sure ways I know to cultivate inner beauty.

If you think about it, we have a gold mine inside us that is our inner beauty, and all we have to do is give it the space to shine through. Any actions we take to improve our inner selves in turn manifest internal beauty, just like outward actions manifest external beauty. With a beautiful heart and mind, eventually the dots will connect themselves.