Author’s Note: I’m in the process of simplifying my web presence, so am closing down some of my sites until I decide what to do with them. This post original appeared on the now-defunct blog “Outside My Comfort Zone”.
One of the first steps you can take in moving outside the comfort zone is to be your own best fan and cheerleader. In the quest for change (and that’s really what going beyond your comfort zone is) believing in yourself is essential.
So what can you do when your level of self-belief needs a little topping up?
Face Your Fears
Being your own best fan means that you owe it to yourself to face your fears and move beyond them. Dealing with issues such as fear of failure and fear of change will give you the biggest boost of self-confidence and self-belief you will ever know. And in addition to the increase in self-confidence, you may also find that what you were afraid of wasn’t all that bad.
“When you face your fear, most of the time you will discover that it was not really such a big threat after all. We all need some form of deeply rooted, powerful motivation — it empowers us to overcome obstacles so we can live our dreams.” ~Les Brown
Talk Nice To Yourself
Would you call your best friend an idiot or a dummy on a regular basis? Would they let you? Chances are not, on both counts. So why do you do it to yourself?
We feed ourselves a diet of negative self-talk such as “I’m an idiot,” or “I’m such a klutz” or my favorite “I’m too stupid to live” and then wonder why we lack self-confidence and self-belief.
Being your own best fan means learning to talk nicely to yourself. And I can tell you from experience that this can be one of the biggest steps outside your comfort zone you will ever take. But oh, how much better you will feel, and how much for full your self-belief tank will be when you tell yourself you are intelligent, beautiful, the best at what you do, and totally deserving of a good life… AND BELIEVE IT!
And if you don’t believe it at first? Keep talking nice to yourself until you do believe it.
“We all have voices in our heads which talks to us on an almost constant basis. Our voices give us messages continually, and what they say to us affects us.” ~Juliene Berk
You Are A Work In Progress
Yes, it’s true. You are a work in progress. I am a work in progress. The super-model on the magazine cover is a work in progress. There isn’t one person on this planet that is 100 percent perfect in all areas of their life.
If you think you need to work on something in your life, it’s not the end of the world. It’s certainly no reason to stop believing in yourself. In fact, it can be a great source of self-belief to take a class and learn something new or polish up an old skill that’s fallen into disuse. And don’t forget to be your own best cheerleader when you accomplish it!
Regardless of when you stopped believing in yourself, or why it happened, it’s not too late to start again. Chances are your self-belief tank just needs a little topping up. You’ll open up a whole new world of experiences and possibilities beyond your comfort zone when you do.
I believe you can do it. Do you?
Photo Credit: Stock Xchange
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