Is Your Self Stopping Your Success?
Success is an inside job. Even if your body and mind are ready, willing, and able to learn and do whatever is necessary to get the job done, a negative self-image may stop you.
Although we create many outward images of ourselves- so we can interact with or impress others and sell our ideas or services-we only have one self-image. The way
we view ourselves determines the level of success we attain in anything.
To achieve more success, some parts of our sense of self will have to change. Your inward impression of yourself controls much of what you create in your life.
When someone says, "Good morning, how are you?" you probably answer, "Fine," regardless of any troubles you may be having. The image you project is often very
different from your true sense of self.
Because your level of success and happiness is controlled by your interior self-image, you must try to ensure that your exterior image and your interior image are in sync. If you can't match your self-worth with your exterior image, your ability to achieve at the highest levels will be restricted.
If the image you have of yourself consists of only undistinguished and unexceptional qualities-or all the things you are not-then your self-image is discrediting your
positive attributes. You can be-and in fact are-both at the same time.
For example, if you get a pimple on your nose, isn't that all you see when you look in the mirror? Even though the rest of your face is just fine, you worry about the one blemish. But your pimple does not negate the wonderfulness of all your other features.
You can choose to put the not-so-positive side into proper perspective by no longer making it your focus. Once you have the right perspective, you are free to see all the good things about yourself. You can see that you have a profusion of strengths and abilities.
When people operate from the not-so-positive side, they give themselves negative labels, saying, "I don't really have what it takes," or "I'm not cut out for this." Often these labels are not true, but if they are your truth, a negative self-image results and affects your confidence, performance and happiness.
As a child, my weakness was my cowardice. That weakness prompted me to excel at karate. My lack of self-esteem as a young boy living on the Navajo reservation was one reason I decided to become a professional speaker and help others-so I could feel better about myself. My weaknesses have made me stronger. If you are prone to take charge of a job and do it well, you are most likely driven by a weakness. This weakness could be a feeling of inferiority that makes you go out of your way to do well.
Your feelings of inadequacy may cause you to be a top performer. In order to control the outcome, you have to take charge. Perhaps you have a need to be noticed, praised, or acknowledged that causes you to excel.
I know many people who appear to be very strong-they look and act like confident, make-it-happen, take-charge people. They get the job done, reach out to others, and are there to help whenever they can. Many are known for their caring hearts. But if they stop helping others, they feel empty and much of their joy goes away.
On the surface, they seem fine, but inside they just aren't happy. For these people, helping others is like getting an emotional fix. They must help others to feel okay inside.
You must drill down to the core of your heart to find the real truth about YOU as a PERSON. The real truth is always much better than your truth about you.
Generally, the way others see you is much better than the way you see yourself. Change your self-paradigm and accept the truth about yourself - that is how you will begin to grow and achieve differently. As your belief in yourself increases, so does your ability to accomplish anything your heart desires!
Jack M. Zufelt
"Mentor to Millions"
Success is an inside job. Even if your body and mind are ready, willing, and able to learn and do whatever is necessary to get the job done, a negative self-image may stop you.
Although we create many outward images of ourselves- so we can interact with or impress others and sell our ideas or services-we only have one self-image. The way
we view ourselves determines the level of success we attain in anything.
To achieve more success, some parts of our sense of self will have to change. Your inward impression of yourself controls much of what you create in your life.
When someone says, "Good morning, how are you?" you probably answer, "Fine," regardless of any troubles you may be having. The image you project is often very
different from your true sense of self.
Because your level of success and happiness is controlled by your interior self-image, you must try to ensure that your exterior image and your interior image are in sync. If you can't match your self-worth with your exterior image, your ability to achieve at the highest levels will be restricted.
If the image you have of yourself consists of only undistinguished and unexceptional qualities-or all the things you are not-then your self-image is discrediting your
positive attributes. You can be-and in fact are-both at the same time.
For example, if you get a pimple on your nose, isn't that all you see when you look in the mirror? Even though the rest of your face is just fine, you worry about the one blemish. But your pimple does not negate the wonderfulness of all your other features.
You can choose to put the not-so-positive side into proper perspective by no longer making it your focus. Once you have the right perspective, you are free to see all the good things about yourself. You can see that you have a profusion of strengths and abilities.
When people operate from the not-so-positive side, they give themselves negative labels, saying, "I don't really have what it takes," or "I'm not cut out for this." Often these labels are not true, but if they are your truth, a negative self-image results and affects your confidence, performance and happiness.
As a child, my weakness was my cowardice. That weakness prompted me to excel at karate. My lack of self-esteem as a young boy living on the Navajo reservation was one reason I decided to become a professional speaker and help others-so I could feel better about myself. My weaknesses have made me stronger. If you are prone to take charge of a job and do it well, you are most likely driven by a weakness. This weakness could be a feeling of inferiority that makes you go out of your way to do well.
Your feelings of inadequacy may cause you to be a top performer. In order to control the outcome, you have to take charge. Perhaps you have a need to be noticed, praised, or acknowledged that causes you to excel.
I know many people who appear to be very strong-they look and act like confident, make-it-happen, take-charge people. They get the job done, reach out to others, and are there to help whenever they can. Many are known for their caring hearts. But if they stop helping others, they feel empty and much of their joy goes away.
On the surface, they seem fine, but inside they just aren't happy. For these people, helping others is like getting an emotional fix. They must help others to feel okay inside.
You must drill down to the core of your heart to find the real truth about YOU as a PERSON. The real truth is always much better than your truth about you.
Generally, the way others see you is much better than the way you see yourself. Change your self-paradigm and accept the truth about yourself - that is how you will begin to grow and achieve differently. As your belief in yourself increases, so does your ability to accomplish anything your heart desires!
Jack M. Zufelt
"Mentor to Millions"