Are you sitting in front of your phone or computer right now, moping around? Are you dreading going to school this Monday – to face the students, semi-friends, bullies, parents and teachers? Basically- Are you living a life that is any less than fantastic?
Well.. You’re in for a surprise secret today. One that has been there all along, but you may just be finding out about right this very moment: You deserve the best life. And, its in your very nature to make it happen. You may have been in an anxious rut for a while, but all it takes is a little pinch of desire, optimism and determination. I know this may sound easier said than done- and at the beginning it will be. But you’ll see that once you start focusing more on yourself for a better life, you’ll wonder why you hadn’t cared less about what others thought and gave yourself more credit even earlier.
Five Steps To Realizing Your Potential:
The first step is to make the commitment that you are worth it (Click to Tweet this quote) Early on, it will take every ounce of your determination to remind yourself of this. This step is so important because it is so easy to let yourself fall back into negativity- not this time, though.
Decide what success looks like. You’ve gotten in the habit of down-playing your strengths and noticing what you would call “flaws,” (which probably don’t even exists at all!). Before we can start moving in the direction of where we want to be, we need to know which way we’re going. Write a list of the TOP THREE things that would let you know that you’re reaching your goal of who you want to be- this could be, “not caring about what other people think about me,” “not afraid to try new things,” “accept my body as it is,” or “Always realize righ
t away that people who bully me are actually asking for help instead of taking it defensively”. Next, list five things about yourself that prove that you are already on your way there. For example, “I talked to two new people last week already,” or “my teacher said I was extra creative in drawing class,” or “I set a goal last month to do X and didn’t even take the time to realize or celebrate that I actually achieved it!” Pro Tip: You are already there, you just need to take off the gloom-colored glasses that you’re wearing and start believing it.
Forgive yourself …by forgiving others. In order to move in a positive direction, we need to let go of attacks against ourselves. It can be hard to forgive ourselves some time, and it may be easier for you to forgive others first for things they’ve done to you! Whether you forgive them or yourself first, one always breeds the other, and you will be in a much better place to focus on moving your life forward from here.
What you see is all there is, and you decide what that is. One of my favorite quotes from author Alan Cohen are, “You can re-frame any situation you want, why not re-frame in your favor?” Sometimes when people say mean things to us, or what may even just appear mean to us, we can stop and say, “hey, maybe they are having a bad day and didn’t even realize what they were saying!” Once you make the decision that you are innocent and view the situation in a positive light, move on and don’t focus on it after you’ve made the decision.
It isn’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to. OK. So just because you decide to change doesn’t mean “they” will change, you say. In fact, though, they will- you just need to set the standard for them. Once you start acting like who you want to be, you will turn into who you want to be, and the world will change around you to new perspectives that you never could have imaged before!
Now, open up your notebook and start writing! You have a glorious journey right in front of you!