Create a positive reference guide to yourself

When it comes to pursuing (and achieving) your dreams, self-belief plays an enormously positive role. But even the most confident of us can occasionally get caught up in a downward spiral of self-doubt. So what to do?

One idea is to create a positive guide to yourself. Start by asking some questions:

• What have I done that I am proud of?
• What have I achieved?
• Where have I succeeded?
• What have I done well?
• What would others say I have done well?

The answers can be big things or small things. Basically what you're doing is creating a list of positive outcomes.

For each of the things you come up with, ask yourself, "What is it that allowed me to do that? What skills do I have that helped me accomplish that? What characteristics do I have? What knowledge do I have?"

Start building a picture of not only what you have done well, but also why you have been able to do that. The more you understand about why you have succeeded in the past, the better equipped you are to see how those things might apply to success in the future.

This exploration focuses your attention on the positive, but more than that, it creates a positive reference guide to yourself that you can refer to in the future. You can pull it out when you're starting to feel down on yourself, or any old time you want a reminder.

Try this: Instead of doing this in one positive binge, try making it an ongoing part of your weekly habit. Start by making the list from the questions above (and any others that come to mind) and each week pick two or three to explore.

By making it an ongoing habit, you incorporate a regular, systematic positive focus into your week.

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by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Comments

[Jens Upton]

Hiya

A really useful suggestion!
It's a good all-round method of gathering positive info on oneself.

Not wishing to jump your gun, I recommend imagining using those positive skills in a future situation where they will be beneficial. I've found that also helps establish a healthy reference point for the future.

Thanks
Jens

[Lisa W.]

Curt:
Thank you so much for writing this blog. A hopeful voice during tough times. You rock!
best,
Lisa

[Curt Rosengren]

Jens, absolutely. The more "reality" we can build into our visualization, the easier that visualization is to see as real as well.

Thanks Lisa! That's always good to hear. I'm glad you're finding it helpful.