When You Think You Can    By Linda Salazar



How many times have you heard yourself say I can't, only to find that you really can and you did? It seems whenever we are faced with something that feels like it's beyond our ability we automatically go into the 'I can't do it' syndrome before we even consider the possibility that we really can. Too often we give up on ourselves before we even start having less faith in ourselves than others have in us or we have in others.

Recently, I was talking to a friend who did the 3 Day Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. The goal was 60 miles a day and her first thoughts after she arrived at the event were, "There's no way I can do this. I haven't prepared enough, I'm not in shape." Quite simply, she was scared and overwhelmed by the task ahead of her.

Well, three days later and two very sore, blistered feet, she did it, along with thousands of others, who probably echoed those same words before they started out. I can't speak for the thousands of others who completed the walk, but I know how proud and joyful my friend was when she was done. It was absolutely a monumental event in her life and I was thrilled for her and the accomplishment.

It's that joy and proud feeling that makes your journey from I can't, to I can, to I did, so worthwhile. You deserve to prove to yourself that you absolutely can move forward when faced with any circumstances that seem daunting and impossible.

Yes, your fears will show up when new opportunities present themselves and that's good! It means you're expanding yourself and the more you expand the more you build on your strengths. When you pull back from what you fear, you end up with an ongoing list of things to fear, which in turn, keeps you spending more and more time living in that fear and the world of I can't.

You simply need to embrace the fear, feel it, hear it, learn from it and then march on through to the other side. You are not your fears. Your desires, dreams, hopes, aspirations are who you are and you deserve all of them.

There will always be excuses as to why you can't and it's up to you to realize that's all they are, excuses. When you want something bad enough, when you know in your heart of hearts you've got to find a way, you will. You absolutely will. And, once you are in total alignment with the 'I CAN' through your thoughts, feelings, words and actions, you're just one step away from, I DID IT!

"If you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." -Henry Ford

 

Overcoming Negative Emotions    A negative emotional state can really ruin your day. Prolonged stress, depression, or anger are clearly not conducive to high levels of performance. And the worst part is that these emotional states tend to be self-perpetuating. Working while overly stressed can lead to even more stress. Depression and worry can cause you to avoid taking the kinds of actions that will help you escape the pit of negativity. And anger can lead you to take unproductive actions you may later regret.

The Power of Now   Like most people, you probably want things. Think of three things you want (before you read on). 1, 2, 3 things.  Did you do it? Whether or not you want a spiffy car, to lose weight, a new relationship, fame, fortune or whatever, you want what you want because you believe it will make you happy. Feeling good is the bottom line behind every single goal. Even if your goal is to help other people feel good, you want to do it because it makes YOU feel good. It makes you happy.

Choose to Forgive   I want you to realize something very important. Are you listening, because if you can grasp this concept, you will learn to soar. If you are angry or upset at someone, if you feel that they did something to you that was wrong, you’re being angry, hurt and upset is not going to change them. You are only going to hurt yourself. What would you rather be, right in the conviction that everyone should feel sorry for you for that hard time you have had at the hands of others, or free from the pain. Wouldn’t it be better to forgive, rise above the pain and be happy? What does it prove to the world, to that person, to you by holding on to the hurt?

Building Self-Confidence   It's no secret that self-confidence is very important to achieving success in any area of life. The thing about self-confidence is that it is very sensitive to our personal experience and is inherently instable. In other words, your self-confidence has a “snowball affect.” And it can snowball in a positive direction or it can snowball in a negative direction. Here’s how it works:

How Do You Talk to Yourself?  How do you treat yourself? Do you regularly appreciate and celebrate your accomplishments? Or do you just step over them to get on with the next job? I’ll bet you could use a tune-up when it comes to patting yourself on the back. My new clients often discover they have a habit of saying to themselves, “Faster! Now do this! Faster! Now do this!” What do you say to yourself?

Do You Have a Good Sense of Humor   Plato once said that “Life was meant to be lived as play.” When I ask audience members if they have a sense of humor, I usually get 25 per cent of the group raising their hands. Yet, when I tell a joke, most of the audience laughs. I’d like to expand your understanding of yourself and humor. Underneath the word PLAYFULNESS are more specific terms such as humor and fun. Humor is the ability to give laughter or be the instigator of playfulness. This is the more yang, or masculine principle. Fun, on the other hand, is the ability to receive laughter.