3 Mental Shifts To Enrich Self-Belief
Why are we so hard on ourselves? We hold ourselves back, stuck in a “comfort zone” that isn’t very uncomfortable.
If you’re tired of believing the nay-saying of negative self-talk and feel like you can’t accomplish anything, it’s time for a change.
It doesn’t even need to take weeks to accomplish. In fact, by allowing yourself to embrace the three mental shifts below, you’ll enrich your self-belief and be able to do so in a single afternoon.
Shift the Past
It’s time to let it go! Look at all the times when you felt less than stellar. Every time you mess up, you’ll need to forgive yourself.
Remind yourself that these were experiences, not personal characteristics of who you are. It’s just that simple. This might take some practice to do well, so prepare to dig in and face some things you’ve been avoiding for a while. Journaling helps with this.
You start by examining each memory separately and responding to those memories with a heartfelt “I forgive you.” You can use your journal for this exercise for sure. Once forgiven, you have to move on. That’s it. While this might not sound fun, it is crucial for success. Moving on requires a mindset and perspective shift. But don’t worry, with practice, you’ll get better at this.
Here are a few ways to let go easier:
- Stop yourself from ruminating about that old scenario. Identify when these memories are most vital. Is it during a specific time of the day, during the holidays, when you visit a particular place, or when you’re around certain people?
- Stop yourself from verbally repeating the story over and over. Some of us like to rewind the past with friends and family. Seeing their eyes roll every time you bring up that old story may be a sign to change the narrative. Instead, practice being present when you feel the opposing force of the past coming on. Talk about what’s happening in your current life and the near future. Change the subject or remove yourself from the conversation altogether.
- Sometimes, it helps to distance yourself from places and even people that remind you of those lowly times; maybe not forever (but if that works for you, certainly do so) until you’re strong enough to withstand the memory.
Shift the Messages You’re Listening To
Pay attention to what you listen to and watch, especially from within. Not every voice in your head says something worth absorbing. Not every voice in your head speaks the truth. Our emotions do lie to us.
***Did you know that even when you’re dehydrated, malnourished, or haven’t gotten enough rest, your mind and emotions can be severely affected?
What are the messages you give yourself constantly? You must practice shifting to a more positive dialogue if you're being negative—re-word problems to create exciting challenges and brainstorm solutions. Change out negative words to a more positive-sounding counterpart. For example:
- “I’m having a bad day, week, month, season.” Perhaps you could say: I’m going through a re-positioning in this phase of my life.
- “This is too hard, I’m not smart enough.” Perhaps instead, say: I am learning, growing, and expanding my knowledge.
- “They have broken me; I don’t believe I’ll ever get over it.” Replace that with I am healing and recovering despite what has happened.
- “I’m too old to start over.” Replace that phrase with Because I am more mature; I’ll be able to use my wisdom to start again, this time better than before.
If you intend to let go and enrich your self-belief truly, your inner dialogue must improve and maneuver out negative spiraling. Self-awareness of your internal dialogue is where you start. Notice each time a negative self-belief comes up, recognize it for what it is (an old negative belief that you can change), and switch to a positive statement until you deeply believe the new version of yourself.
Shift the Game Plan
Now it’s time to act. Take your objectives and discover the steps needed to fulfill them. Set yourself in motion to accomplish those smaller goals. Accomplish things. These accomplishments will shift your self-belief and create momentum in your personal and professional life.
What you’re doing is creating empirical evidence that you’re a person capable of success with each micro-goal you accomplish.
Those micro-goals will eventually add to those grand, sweeping goals you initially set, proving you’re capable of change and doing great things.
Shifting your thinking isn’t as complicated as it’s made it out to be. The key is to be aware of your review and hold steady to the course you’ve laid with these three rules. You will be amazed at how differently you feel and how quickly life begins to get better.
To Right Believing,
xoxo | AJD
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