Continued...
Many messages of self-doubt have been hammered into our brains from many different directions: negative childhood messages, difficult work situations which have painfully impacted us, social expectations that we may not feel we’ve measured up to.
So, understanding first and foremost that your sense of self-worth is something you’re basing on your history (and not on your true abilities) is the first step on our road to reclaiming our worth.
That mental shift alone is golden.
Now that you have a crack in that mental landscape, take a look at the specific patterns and actions you take that continue to affirm your self-doubt – your sense of unworthiness. For instance, do you have moments of self-sabotage that you recognize? If you have, recognize it for what it is: your response to feeling unworthy.
Now your job is to increase your self-worth, which is a much more enjoyable and goal-oriented job than taking yourself to task for those moments.
Speaking of goals, this is a good time to bring them forward while you’re building your sense of worth, and particularly when you aren’t feeling all that worthy.
You know how difficult it is to move forward when your mind is tugging at your sleeve with a lot of “but’s” and “what if’s”. The pull to hesitate, to procrastinate, or to do something with less than one’s best feels particularly strong when you’re laboring under those negative messages and feelings.
So it is best to move forward anyway. The benefits of this choice are deeply impactful. First of all, you are giving yourself the message that you are, in fact, worth the effort. Secondly, you are challenging the feeling of “I can’t” by embracing the fact of “I am”.
It does help, of course, to have a path to follow. I do recommend it.
I suggest that you create for yourself either a Vision, Mission, Goal, Objective or Action which you will follow. This will give you SO much more clarity as well as a feeling of ground beneath your feet. An added bonus to this plan is that sometimes following a pre-established plan will help you move through those times you feel that lack of worth. Just follow the Yellow Brick Road you laid out.
Think about beginning skiers – they need that tow rope to pull them forward to the starting point. Business owners are no different. We all need tow ropes and some guidance to help us find our best rhythm and our realization of our true worth.
You really are a superhero, you know. And even Thor has his moments.
So, understanding first and foremost that your sense of self-worth is something you’re basing on your history (and not on your true abilities) is the first step on our road to reclaiming our worth.
That mental shift alone is golden.
Now that you have a crack in that mental landscape, take a look at the specific patterns and actions you take that continue to affirm your self-doubt – your sense of unworthiness. For instance, do you have moments of self-sabotage that you recognize? If you have, recognize it for what it is: your response to feeling unworthy.
Now your job is to increase your self-worth, which is a much more enjoyable and goal-oriented job than taking yourself to task for those moments.
Speaking of goals, this is a good time to bring them forward while you’re building your sense of worth, and particularly when you aren’t feeling all that worthy.
You know how difficult it is to move forward when your mind is tugging at your sleeve with a lot of “but’s” and “what if’s”. The pull to hesitate, to procrastinate, or to do something with less than one’s best feels particularly strong when you’re laboring under those negative messages and feelings.
So it is best to move forward anyway. The benefits of this choice are deeply impactful. First of all, you are giving yourself the message that you are, in fact, worth the effort. Secondly, you are challenging the feeling of “I can’t” by embracing the fact of “I am”.
It does help, of course, to have a path to follow. I do recommend it.
I suggest that you create for yourself either a Vision, Mission, Goal, Objective or Action which you will follow. This will give you SO much more clarity as well as a feeling of ground beneath your feet. An added bonus to this plan is that sometimes following a pre-established plan will help you move through those times you feel that lack of worth. Just follow the Yellow Brick Road you laid out.
Think about beginning skiers – they need that tow rope to pull them forward to the starting point. Business owners are no different. We all need tow ropes and some guidance to help us find our best rhythm and our realization of our true worth.
You really are a superhero, you know. And even Thor has his moments.
Lori Kirstein • LKCopyArts@Gmail.com