Self Esteem

The Power of Self-Confidence

One of the greatest gifts you can give yourself is to recognize your self-worth. Many of my readers report that they lack self-confidence. They write and tell me that visualization and other empowering techniques are difficult because “deep down inside” they don’t feel good enough. They lack a belief in themselves.

When this occurs I ask my readers to write down 50 personality strengths that they admire about themselves. Although this is a challenging exercise it is also a reminder that your brilliance as a person is within you, and that you are the person who takes it for granted.

I absolutely believe that every person is unique, even if most people share similar insecurities. If you were to do the personality strength exercise, would you naturally minimize your strengths? If you wrote generous on your word list, would you immediately think about a time that you were stingy? If you wrote intelligent on your list, would you remember a time when you felt dumb? It’s not unusual to want to question your positive opinions of yourself, yet the exercise is meant to highlight your strengths and instill a sense of confidence.

Another powerful exercise is to ask ten people to identify what they admire most about you. Many people resist asking others because they fear that others could not identify admirable qualities.

True self-confidence requires a certain comfort level with your attributes and your insecurities. Getting feedback from others will reinforce what you subconsciously know about yourself. It can be helpful for you to process this information, write it down somewhere it may be easily accessed when you need an extra boost of self-confidence. This is empowering because it reinforces your strengths. You will be less likely to question yourself in the face of criticism.

Good self-esteem is the foundation that enables you to follow your dreams. Is your self-confidence keeping you from attaining your goals?

There is a coaching formula that frequently reminds people of the sequence of success.

BE.DO.HAVE

You must be, which involves being connected to the power within yourself. You must do; the things that you need to do to get there, and you will have your desired outcome.

Tapping into your self-confidence will empower you to pursue your dreams. Don’t cheat yourself by dreaming small. Instead, dream big!

Here’s a dream I have for the year 2004. In the next year I believe that my colleague and I will run a ten-week group series for women on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Self-confidence is the fuel that is driving the project. A genuine belief in my worth to change the lives of others is the motivation for the project.

There are two energy forces working behind the scenes when I think about this dream. The first is the power inside of me that comes from my three top personality strengths—perseverance, determination, and confidence. The second is my ability to empower the dream by carrying out the actions it will require to get the job done. I am sending Oprah Winfrey this project every week until her staff contacts me.

. I rarely remember quotes, but one that I live by daily is…Where there is a will, there is a way.
Stay tuned and I will keep you posted on my dreams.

Do you have a dream for 2004? Feel free to e-mail me and together we will make it happen.