student asking question

How come "yourself" was used here not "him or herself", even though he's speaking about traits of successful people?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

The speaker is making a general statement to the audience (you), not any particular person. When we are addressing a general audience or making a general statement, we can use the "yourself" or "yourselves." Ex: If you want to be successful, you have to keep pushing yourself. Ex: Learn to love yourself before loving others.

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