Positive Self Talk

I often struggle to feel good about myself without any outside validation.  I want to be the best at everything, and I want everyone to notice.  I want people to approve of me, who I am, and the decisions I make.  I have a very hard time when I feel that someone is judging me.  I want to defend myself to that person and MAKE them like me.  But, the reality is that not everyone is going to like me.  Some people will dislike me.  People may disapprove of my decisions or how I lead my life, and it's all OKAY!  I have to get to a point in my life where I'm OK with or without the approval of others.  I was speaking to a friend about this, and she mentioned the idea of daily "affirmations" to start the morning.  She mentioned looking at myself in the mirror and saying "I love you" (which seems hard and weird and awkward, but worth a shot).  Because of this discussion we had, I was inspired to look up some positive affirmations, and I found some great ones!  The first one made me tear up.  I'm going to print these off tomorrow and put them up in my room and read a different one every morning until something sinks in!