Accepting yourself can help you embrace your special characteristics and learn to deal with being different form others. Instead of trying to change anything about yourself, you must first be able to accept who you are and how you look at this very moment.  Begin by defining your unique qualities. Some examples might be your: religion, culture, diet (if you are vegan, etc), medical history, disability, and physical characteristics. Make a list of all of these "different" qualities and consciously accept each one. Go through the list and say or think to yourself, "I accept my religion. It may be different from others but that does not make it less positive. I embrace my unique beliefs and values. They are just as important and credible as other people's beliefs." If you find yourself thinking negatively like, "It makes me not good enough," about one of your unique qualities, think to yourself, "No, I accept it. It is not bad. It is part of who I am. Differentiating yourself from others by thinking you are different may actually help to protect your self-esteem in certain situations. Say to yourself, “Yes, I am different. Yes, I am unique. I am cool and awesome and no one can change that!” Perhaps you see you different qualities as flaws, but they aren’t, they are what make you special. Try to take each different characteristic you have and make meaning out of it.  For example, let's say you have a physical handicap, how has this disability helped you grow? What have you learned from it and what values have you gained? Many people find that their struggles teach them great lessons in life, especially to value and appreciate what you have instead of focusing on what you don't have. Avoid thoughts of inadequacy. If you think, "I'm not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough," change those thoughts to, "I am good enough for me. I don't need to be the prettiest or the smartest to feel good about myself. I am who I am and I love myself for it." Don’t define yourself as completely different from other people. This can lead to you feeling ostracized, left-out or rejected. Instead, look at how you are similar to others.  For instance, we are all human beings and share much of the same genes. In fact, we actually share 98% of our genes with chimpanzees, so we aren't that different from them either. We are all living, breathing creatures. If you feel very different from certain people, identify your commonalities. Some examples might include being human, having certain interests, or speaking a certain language. You may begin to notice just how alike we are in certain respects. Being different isn’t all bad – embrace the unique characteristics you have which are due to your upbringing, culture, and family values.  Find the positive aspects of your own unique culture and focus on those. For example, cultural components can include: language, religion, traditions, clothing, holidays, values, standards, gender roles, social roles, occupations, and more. If you dress different or have a different religion, this means you are interesting.
تقبّل كونك شخصًا منفردًا. أعِد صياغة سماتك الفريدة. اعلم ما الذي يجمع بينك وبين الآخرين. كن فخورًا بأصلك ومرجعيتك.