Love your neighbor as you love yourself ... So, How's that working for you?

Love your neighbor as you love yourself ... So, how's that working for you?  You fulfilled and living in your best? Neighbors fulfilled and living their best?

In the past I have tried to fill the expectations of others to gain the desired acceptance and love of ones that didn't have the concept or ability of empowering or loving others to their best.  Hindsight (and now a heart passion of mine) of firsthand experience of deeper understanding of the Biblical teaching of Matthew 22:38:

YLT translation:  and the second [is] like to it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself;

AMP translation:  The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’

NKJV translation:

And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

I'm great at loving my neighbor ... just in the past have sucked (excuse the brashness of the word but it pretty much sums up how I totally missed this) at loving self.  The amplified translation really drove it home for me with the added "unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others" as you do for yourself.  Hmmm ... I am a motivator, encourager and empowerer for others but imagine what God can do through my life if I do as He mandates in His word and do it for myself first.  Then and only then will I have the best understanding of to do it for best others.  As I ponder that I come to understand and link it to my message to my family that sometimes what you think is best and want to do is not what is best for the other person and doing it can actually weigh them down, hold them back, cause more burden/delay.  So what I'm getting is that, in my loving myself I go after seeking His best for myself in all areas of my life (heart, soul, mind, and strength/body) and from what/how I learn and grow in doing such, I am able to love and feed others from.

I am so kicking the twisted mindset I have been fed and received to "sacrifice loving self (for the good of others)" and just jump to "loving others" omitting the "as yourslef" and making a stance to taking a step in faith and walk into better awareness and understanding of "loving self" so I can love others even more fully into their best that they were created for.

Now to get my mini steps in place to make sure it happens in monumental upward progress of success.

Please share steps you take to love yourself so you can love others better.  I would appreciate insight of those who have gone before me on this path.  Post in comments or email me if it's to personal to share here.  Thanks in advance!

Happy New Insight to Loving yourself Blessings!