MOTIVATION MONDAY: BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

This article was originally published May 6, 2019 at https://gritdaily.com/motivation-monday-believe-in-yourself/

Do you slog through your Monday mornings?

If you lament the end of the weekend and dread returning to the office, you may need our Motivation Monday quick tips. Grit Daily offers an avenue to connect with others like you. We’re here to help get your work week off to a good start. Pump your fists – it’s time for Motivation Monday!

THE BLURRED LINE

Faith is something that is intrinsic, a personally held belief so strong that you blindly trust it to be true so deeply that no events, or lack thereof, can convince you otherwise. Confidence, and self-confidence, in particular, is the belief in yourself, your abilities and your own future. Both faith and confidence can be shaken and the line between the two is blurred. However, when the latter is shaken, the consequences are far more dire and destructive to wellness.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

On the surface, it sounds so simple. Believe in who you are. Believe that you are destined to accomplish whatever it is you are in pursuit of. But nothing is ever that simple. Your upbringing, your support network or its absence, even your faith all impact your level of self-confidence. Without it, you lose motivation, lack happiness and will struggle to achieve your goals. Motivation Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and so on is critical on a daily basis or you will be held back from your goals and dreams.

Self-confidence is not only something that you feel within you, but it is also projected outward so that others can see it. And feel it. Like attracts like! Confident people associate with confident people who boost each other up, create that vital support network and make things happen. Of course, everything has a dark side. Too much confidence leads to arrogance and then hubris and who wants to be around an egotistical asshole? Certainly not me.

TIPS TO BOLSTERING YOUR SELF-CONFIDENCE

There are two schools of thought with this: some argue that it arises through upbringing whereas others believe that it can be taught. I subscribe to the latter theory. Almost everything can be learned, it just takes dedication and effort. Motivation Monday is all about applying what you learn, not just reading it.

#1 – SET YOURSELF A MANTRA

Create a mantra, something along the lines of “I believe in me.” And say it, over and over again until you actually start to believe it.

#2 – MANIFEST YOUR MANTRA

See your mantra in action. Each time that you achieve something, associate that achievement with how you believed in yourself to the point where you willed it to happen.

#3 – KEEP LOOKING AHEAD

Do not burden your thinking with all the examples of your failures. We all fail countless times in our lives. Look ahead, envision a future where you see yourself doing the things you seek to do.

WHAT’S YOUR MOTIVATIONAL STORY?

Jim Carrey, a funny Canuck who admittedly has a bit of a dark side and has battled a few demons and setbacks in his 57 years. He was raised in a family so poor that they lived in a van parked on a relative’s lawn. Jim grew up marveling at the humorous antics of The Carol Burnett Show.  With a motivation so strong, he actually convinced himself that he would be on that show or something like it. Comedic acting was his destiny: of this, he was certain.

In fact, so certain that he wrote himself a cheque in 1990. Essentially manifesting his destiny in written form so that he could look at it whenever he doubted himself to bolster his self-confidence. He kept that $10,000,000 cheque, dated 1995 and written to himself for “acting services rendered” in his wallet until his father died in 1994. At the funeral, Jim, still poor and struggling as an actor, tossed that cheque into the casket but he did not give up the promise that he made to himself and to his father. He believed he could achieve the goal. Indeed, it wasn’t long before he was cast as Ace Ventura, Pet Detective. And, as they say, the rest is history …

Today’s Motivation Monday lesson is all about believing in yourself. Set your goal, aim for it, and when you doubt yourself, dig deeper.