You know those times you felt yourself willing to rise into a new endeavor, or to follow your joy instead of the paycheck and you thought “I believe in myself”. Well the truth is, that phrase isn’t the lighthouse guiding you to new shores that you thought it was.
“Believing in myself” has gotten me into trouble many times. I used it like a blanket to protect myself against uncertainty and the fear of inaction.
I’ll just keep believing myself. Surely, I know what to do. I’m me. I’ll just stay steady here where I stand and everything will work out fine.
In reality those times you spontaneously felt belief in yourself, you were feeling the conviction behind a decision you’ve made. There’s a whole world of difference in there. Conviction is powerful. It drives you past the known, past the comfortable and into new landscapes of life.
There are so many times when believing in yourself won’t feel like anything special. It won’t make the impact you want it to on your mental/emotional state or in the details of your life.
Here is a revised and more specific way to use believing in yourself to your advantage.
Get Specific. Beef up what you mean by putting specifics behind it. That way, it has more meaning to you. Define what parts of you, you’re believing in. What is it about you that you are rallying behind?
This takes away the vagueness of the phrase and adds power to it. Right away you’ll feel more clarity and more direction and readiness.
Set Intentions. What would you like to achieve in your life right now? What matters to you? On a daily/weekly/monthly basis, what activities would you like to partake in? What aspects of your personality would you like to shift?
Write it Down. Make a list of your intentions. Log your current specifics in relation to those aspects of you that you are championing.
Update Regularly. Redefine what it means to you as often as necessary. Keep it fresh and keep it relevant to where you are in your life and what currently matters to you.
This is an example of what I write for myself (shortened):
Get Specific: ‘I believe in the parts of me that know how to listen to my inner guidance. I am a good listener. I believe in my persistence and ferocity in pursing things that matter to me. I believe in my ability to be clear-minded.’
Set Intentions: ‘To write 2-3 blog posts a week. To meditate regularly. To keep my physical activity level in a place that supports optimal health and vitality. To eat food that nourishes me physically and emotionally. To have a pleasing balance between incoming and outgoing finances.’
[Notice how I have kept these a little specific, a little general. You just want an overview of intention. This is so that you know for sure that you have things that are important to you and they are KNOWN. All parts of you are aware of your goals, desires, likes. For me, it’s a bit of a psychological trick. I feel more comfortable with myself and with trusting myself if I think that I know what I want. Otherwise it feels a bit too hazy. I fear I’ll go off track or become complacent.
No need to write down everything that’s important to you, just choose a few that are most relevant to you right now.]
Write it Down: I write in a notebook as well as post a piece of paper in my bathroom with general daily affirmations. Something like, ‘I trust that my spontaneously arising impulses and instincts correspond to my highest well-being and the highest well-being of those I care about. I trust myself to listen to that guidance that lights my way with ease and knowing. I trust that my intentions and goals will be lovingly woven into the fabric of my every day…’
Update Regularly: As my intentions and goals change, I update that list. Let’s say on my list is “learn 5 new words a week” and after a weeks I don’t feel as passionate about that goal. I update my list to what is most important to me right now.
Now, when you say you Believe in Yourself, you will feel the depth and breadth of what you mean. You’ll feel the power of it rise within you. Because you know it isn’t arbitrary. You’ll know that you really mean: I Have Conviction.
“I am sure about what I want and my ability to achieve whatever I desire.” Not because you’re going to use all your effort to go out and get it – but because you are in tune with your life’s unfolding. You know that it will be incorporated and integrated into your life. Because you’re right there with it, right there with your intentions and with your knowing that your life is on your side.
Love: 