Radical Self-Love: Week 1

The Power of Self-Acceptance

Welcome to Week 1 of the Radical Self Love Challenge.

Before we go deep
into your patterns, your power, your wounds, your worth—
we begin with the part most people spend their whole lives avoiding.

Self-acceptance.

The mirror moment.
The first doorway.
The foundation everything else is built on

The Myth of the Glow-Up:

A lot of people think self-love starts with rituals.
Affirmations in the mirror. A warm bath. A new journal.
Maybe some green juice and a playlist called “healing.”

But that’s not the beginning.
That’s the surface.

You can optimize every area of your life—your body, your habits, your morning routine,
but if you’re still rejecting the parts of you that feel too messy, too broken, too unworthy…

You’re not healing.
You’re performing.

“No amount of self-improvement can make up for a lack of self-acceptance.”
 —Robert Holden

That quote cracked something in me.
Because I’ve lived it.

I’ve seen world-class athletes, entrepreneurs, seekers—people doing everything “right”
still trapped in a loop of proving, performing, and perfecting.

They chase peace through progress.
But peace doesn’t come from perfection.
It comes from permission
to be who and where you are, without shame.

My Story:

Most of my career was built off of trying to prove something.

Prove I belonged.
Prove I was worthy.
Prove I could rise beyond where I came from.

I thought success would silence that voice.
The one that said I wasn’t enough yet.

But no matter what I achieved—degrees, titles, brands, stages—
the voice didn’t leave.
It just got quieter.
More sophisticated.
More spiritual.

Until I stopped trying to outrun it…
and sat down with it.

What Self-Acceptance Really Means:

Self-acceptance isn’t passive.
It’s not weakness.
It’s not giving up or settling.

It’s one of the strongest things you can do.

Because it’s easy to love yourself when everything’s flowing.
When life looks good on the outside.
When validation is loud.

But can you stay with yourself in the shadows?
Can you look in the mirror—no filter, no edit—and still offer love?

That’s the work.
The kind no one claps for.
The kind that doesn’t trend.
But the kind that actually changes your life.

To accept yourself is to say:
“This is who I am right now. And I’m still enough.”

Not someday.
Not after the glow-up.
Not when everything’s healed.

Now.

Because the truth is
Most people aren’t becoming whole.
They’re just trying to perfect themselves enough to feel lovable.

But love isn’t a reward.
It’s a right.

“The degree to which a person can grow is directly proportional to the amount of truth they can accept about themselves without running away.”
 —Leland Val Van De Wall

That’s the threshold.
And you’re standing in front of it.

⸻

What This Looks Like:

This isn’t theory.
This is practice.

• Sitting with your story without needing to fix or filter it
• Meeting the version of you you’ve spent years trying to upgrade and offering them grace  
• Loving yourself through your contradictions  
• Choosing presence over perfection

Because if you don’t accept yourself now,
you’ll keep chasing outcomes to compensate for the love you’re withholding.

Before You Rush to Heal:

We live in a culture obsessed with fixing.
With becoming.
With endlessly upgrading ourselves under the illusion that once we’re “there,”
we’ll finally feel peace.

But the shift doesn’t come when everything outside looks good.
It comes when the war inside goes quiet.

That happens when you stop trying to arrive at some perfect version of yourself,
and start loving the one who’s already here.

This isn’t about staying stuck.
This is about coming home.

As Brené Brown reminds us—
“You are worthy of love and belonging. Now. Not if. Not when. Now.”

And it takes radical courage to believe that your worth isn’t waiting in the future.
It’s already here.

⸻

Your Practice This Week:

Every day this week—10 minutes.
No phone. No fixing. No performing.

Just presence.

Sit with yourself.
Let the thoughts rise. Let the discomfort come.
And instead of pushing it away, whisper:
“I’m not here to fix. I’m here to witness.”

Watch what changes when you stay.

⸻

Reflection Prompts

Grab your journal and get honest:

• Where have I mistaken performance for self-worth?

• What part of me am I still trying to fix before I believe I’m enough?

• What would it feel like to rest in my own presence—without a plan to improve?

• When did I first believe that love had to be earned?

These questions are mirrors.
Let them show you something real.

⸻

Go Deeper

If you want to stay in the energy of this work, here are two pieces I trust to take you deeper:

Watch:
The Power of Vulnerability — Brené Brown (TED Talk)

In this landmark talk, Brené breaks down what it means to truly be seen. Vulnerability, she says, is the birthplace of love, belonging, and joy—but only when we stop performing and start embracing our enoughness. If this lesson stirred something in you, watch this

Listen:

How to Love Yourself Properly — Mark Groves x Sylvester McNutt III 

My brothers Mark and Sylvester sat down and really got into it—what it means to stop performing for love and finally come home to yourself. This is a grounded, raw, powerful conversation that mirrors everything this week is about.

Your Invitation

If this post spoke to you—if it gave language to something you’ve been carrying, or called you back to your own truth—drop a comment.
Let this be a space where truth lives and stories breathe. I’d love to hear where you are on this path.

As I sign offline here in Nosara, Costa Rica—where I’m co-leading a powerful group of men deep into their hearts—know that I’m walking this work right beside you.

And we’re just getting started.

Next week, we move into Self-Expression—the bold, often-forgotten art of living in alignment with your inner truth. It’s going to shake some things open.

If you feel called to support this journey—this space devoted to soul, silence, and radical self-love—you can become a paid subscriber.
Your support keeps this offering rooted, intimate, and ad-free.

This is where it begins.
This is the love that you are.

~Branden