Believe in Yourself

      Have you ever found yourself as I have?  Sitting in the commons “waiting” areas of your local Mall watching people walk by as they hurry from one store to the next?  I like “people watching.”  I often think about who they might be, what they may do for secular work, even why they may be here in the Mall at this time and what that “important” item they are searching for in the stores might be!  As I do my watching, I have noticed that some people are “different” from others!  I’m not talking about the obvious physical differences.  I’m talking about something that is inside them that radiates to their outer being.  They exude an air of confidence!  What is it about such people who believe in themselves? We see it in the way they carry themselves, in the way they converse with others, and in the things they accomplish. Self-belief in action is an amazing thing to see, and something everyone should aspire to achieve within their own lives.

     However, when we consider making such adjustments within our own lives, we very quickly become intimidated by this kind of change. It seems like it would be hard to change how you think and how you feel about yourself. We tend to stall out before we begin because it seems like only “special” people are going to be able to make those changes and get ‘there.’

     But is that true? A closer examination shows us otherwise. In fact, you’ll find people who believe in themselves have a lot of traits in common. Let’s consider some of those traits now and see how you could make the necessary adjustments to your life.

They Know Where to Find Happiness

…and it’s not where you’ve been looking. People with self-belief know true happiness is something that comes from inside, not from how many toys you have or how many digits you have in your checking account, or your family background, or anything else you would like to make a comparison to.

They’re Really Not Interested in What Everyone Else is Doing

     With no judgment and even less interest in comparing themselves to others, people who believe in themselves tend to focus more on what they’re doing. The competition simply doesn’t matter.  This doesn’t mean they don’t recognize that certain things are important in a person’s life and that they are not always trying to improve themselves.  It only means they don’t use or become influenced by the various “markers of success” that are so important to others.  They are not constantly trying to measure up to the “Smiths” and “Jones” around them. 

They Pick their Battles

     When you lack self-belief, you tend to say “yes” to everything. The problem? If you don’t value your time, no one else will either. Learning which things to say “yes” to and more importantly, how to say “no,” shows the world around them their time is worth fighting for.  You have to be humble enough to recognize that you can’t do everything even if you wanted to.  Time for the things that are important to you must be made available to you.  We ALL only have 24-hours in a day!  Other people will attempt to monopolize your time unless YOU take control of the situations and learn to say “NO!”

They Know When to Speak Confidently

     There’s no waffling or room for wishy-washy statements in the world of the self-confident person. Your “yes” means “yes.” You use a phrase like, “I know…” or “I can…” without second-guessing or wondering if they really can follow through with what they’re saying.  You have “done your research.”  You know your limitations and abilities.  Although your speech emanates the confidence within, your voice is never harsh, degrading, or demeaning of others around you.

They Look for the Challenge

     There’s nothing like a little healthy competition with yourself. Self-belief means you know the value of pushing yourself to get to the next level. To a person with this kind of self-belief, life becomes almost like a game to move up by facing a challenge straight-on.  With each passing day, you recognize that you can be a better person than you were the day before.  And you willingly accept whatever challenges come your way to make the necessary improvements.

They Know How to Fail

     The person with self-belief isn’t afraid to try, which sometimes means not accomplishing what they set out to do. When that happens, they take the lesson learned without making excuses or worrying about how it looks and continue to move forward.  Almost everyone can name the man who invented the electric light bulb - - - Thomas Edison.  Certainly a great inventor of many things. But the man also stumbled, sometimes tremendously.  According to: (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/7-epic-fails-brought-to-you-by-the-genius-mind-of-thomas-edison-180947786/#:~:text=Almost%20everyone%20can%20name%20the,successful%20innovators%20in%20American%20history.&text=In%20response%20to%20a%20question,ways%20that%20will%20not%20work.%E2%80%9D  “In response to a question about his missteps, Edison once said, “I have not failed 10,000 times—I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.””  We can follow that same pattern of thinking!

They Don’t Need the Spotlight

     When you believe in yourself, you don’t need accolades and are quick to point out the accomplishments of others. Most people with strong self-belief are modest. They know their value; they don’t need someone else to underscore it for them.  You don’t find this type of person viewing situations as “It’s all about me!”  No, these are the people who know major accomplishments or even small ones are always a team effort and they are willing to “share the limelight.”

    The amazing thing about all of these traits is just how easy they can be to develop in yourself. By taking the time to build habits of self-belief, you’ll be amazed at how quickly you become one of those fantastic people who really believe in themselves. Just be patient and kind to yourself as you work on personally developing these qualities within yourself and never forget: We’re Only Human!

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"I could  - - - 

I would - - - 

I should - - - 

is not the same as I CAN!"