You Have the Power
Do you ever have the feeling that you are not enough? Do you think you need to look a certain way, or have a certain degree, or have your life all figured out in order to be worthy of love, success, or happiness? The truth is, you have the power and the ability to change the way you feel by how you talk to yourself, think, and who and what you use for inspiration.
This might seem difficult to believe, but you are worthy of love, success, and happiness! You can have the life you want! You need to believe in yourself and speak positively in order to feel it in your bones.
We are wired to think negatively. It goes back to primitive man who was on constant alert in order to survive. At least 80% of our thoughts are negative, according to a study by Queen's University (in Canada.) And 95% of our thoughts are repetitive. Negative thinking is taking over your brain every day! It is a continuous cycle, and your brain can believe these thoughts. It is up to you to interrupt your thoughts because you don’t need to believe them.
If you’re wondering how to do that, here are a few suggestions. First and foremost, give yourself compassion. Speak to yourself the way you would speak to a friend. Be the positive, supportive, and solution-driven friend instead of getting hung up on the problem.
Here’s another one. Every time you catch yourself having a negative thought, make a conscious effort to replace it with a new thought. Think "What is the opposite of this thought?” Flip what you are thinking into something positive. It’s so much more empowering when you ask yourself “What if dreams really do come true?" How would that look? Then start dreaming and envision every detail like a screenwriter from what you are wearing and where you are, to the sights, smells, and sounds in your dream and create a vision that will inspire you to act on what matters most to you.
You also need to look inward and appreciate all that you have to offer instead of comparing yourself to others. As Theodore Roosevelt said, "Comparison is the thief of joy." Oscar Wilde had the right idea when he said, "To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance." Instead of comparing yourself to others, find people who are like you and surround yourself with positivity.
Take it a step further and surround yourself with people who believe in you. Put up photos of your biggest supporters - friends, family, professors, mentors. If you don’t have any, look for positive influencers. There are so many people out there who are waiting for you to realize your potential and once you start to believe in yourself, you can achieve great things. Here a few ways to do this:
Pull photos and quotes from your favorite celebrities, athletes, authors, musicians, podcasters, and influencers that inspire you.
Find people who look like you, are pursuing their dreams, and inspire you.
Put your inspiration on a vision board, on your screensaver, or just fill up a bulletin board so they remind you to manifest into your future.
The main idea here is to inspire you and to live into your authentic self. As you work toward your goal(s), you will improve your self esteem. Include influencers and your heroes and heroines but remember, this is only intended to make you feel good about yourself. Leave out the people who make you feel inadequate or less than in any way.
Make sure you don’t fall back into your old habits. Keep checking and assessing what you read, follow, and watch. Old habits die hard. Remove the negative or anything that makes you feel bad. Do a little bit every day, before things pile up. Or find a day of the week and just check to see if there is something you want to let go of - both physically and mentally with something like a limiting belief. Mel Robbins, one of my favorite motivational speakers, has a weekly practice - Unfollow Friday. And you can do it too. Just scroll through your feed and evaluate how you feel with each creator. Clean it up so you only have good feelings when you scroll. You can do the same thing for your email, magazines, and what you watch (movies, videos, etc.)
Which one will you try this week? Let me know! Feel free to send me a DM or send an email to betsy@betsyseybolt.com to share any comments about how all of this landed with you.
