Self-compassion is such a gift. We all have that small voice that seems to express our most honest needs and desire. A lot of the time, we tune out that inner voice, and when we do acknowledge it we excuse it or ignore it or reason ourselves out of acting on it.When you begin to allow yourself to be more vulnerable, and you work to practice authenticity, you will also find yourself honoring that small voice a lot more often.You will find that small voice is really your guiding light, your true self, and by honoring it you will be living a more fulfilled and happier existence.Self-compassion will become a direct result of higher levels of authenticity and vulnerability, whether or not that's your intention.Here are some ways that I have found to honor my authentic self and make myself vulnerable:Release expectations! If I had a dollar for every time I have let unrealistic expectations send me down a spiral, I would never have to work again. I was talking to a friend this week about taking on too much and the guilt and anxiety that creates when we don't meet our own expectations or feel like we have let others down. The thing is, the reason that we take on too much and set ourselves up is because we are ignoring that inner voice that's going, "Whoa! Hold up, friend! You know you aren't going to be able to make that work!" We have to evaluate how to do things we are truly excited about as opposed to things we feel obligated to do.Say no more often. Seriously. Just do it. The world is not going to crash down if you tell someone no. I know it feels that way, and I lived there for a very long time. I can tell you from experience that the neighborhood ain't great. Practice saying "no." As my friend told me last week, "No is a complete sentence."Embrace rest. This has always been so hard for me. For some reason, if I am sitting and doing nothing (or, let's be real - not doing 5 things at once!), I feel like I am somehow sitting down on the job. I think that's because I have unrealistic expectations about how much I need to do or achieve on any given day. (Expectations! Again!) You do not have to mark everything off your unending list every single day. There are times that your body is going to quit working as well if you do not rest. You have to slow down, chill out a little bit and enjoy your downtime guilt-free.Be honest - about your feelings, what you're thinking, and what you want. I know what you're going to say! You can't be honest all the time, right, cause you'd be in jail? I can totally relate. I do want you, though, to be more honest with the people in your life that you care about, and the people whose decisions and actions impact your daily life. This will probably be harder at first. It gets easier the more you do it, just like anything. When you become more direct and assertive and honest, you really do honor everything you desire and gain clarity.Clarity is so important as you navigate self-care. You need to be really clear on your goals and objectives to begin to habituate self-care and see benefit from it. If you start trying to habituate a journaling discipline, but you don't enjoy writing or journaling and you don't see any benefit from it, why are you trying to put a journaling discipline in place? Did someone suggest it? Do you think you "should" be doing it? Is there something about it that attracts you to it? Clarity. You need some more clarity about what you want to put in place to live more fulfilled. Once you have clarity, you'll know exactly what you want to do, why you want to do it, and what you can do to make it happen.Living in authenticity and vulnerability seems difficult and can be so uncomfortable, but if you will be brutally honest with yourself for just a little while, you will see how it can help you in all areas of your life AND also benefit you by helping you clarify what you are wanting in life and how you can get there.