Set Yourself Up for Success

Much of our success is contingent on the relationship we have with our self-talk. Often, we can be much harder on ourselves than others ever would be and, when it’s destructive, it will derail our goals and dreams!

There are four ways that you can mitigate this…

1. Set Intentions

The highest performers start each day with intention. They know what their high value tasks are, what their interactions will look like, and they predetermine how they will show up. They typically choose one word or three words that would describe their best selves. They think through what the day has in store, and they are deliberate about focusing on those three words.  My three words are disciplined, joyful and kind. I will make sure I think about the meetings, coaching sessions, and personal interactions I have coming up that day and ask myself how I can align with those words.  Choose a word today that would describe the best of who you could be. How would showing up that way impact your interactions?

2. Cancel Out the Negative

Many hopes and dreams die before they are ever pursued. Why? Because we have a habit of derailing ourselves with negative self-talk. We convince ourselves that by pursuing our dreams, we’re being selfish. We sell ourselves the lie that there just isn’t any time. We worry that if we put everything into it and we don’t succeed right away, people will judge us. We tell ourselves, we’re not worthy.

3. Replace with Positive

We need to reevaluate our tendency to be negative and replace those thoughts with positive ones. Thoughts that empower and uplift us, knowing that our success has a positive ripple effect on those around us, our friends, family, colleagues, even the economy. We need to ask ourselves, “If I were ten times more successful, how could I positively impact my inner circle or the charity that I feel so strongly about?” A simple hack to cancel out negative self-talk is to say out loud one word, three powerful times… “Cancel. Cancel. Cancel.” Replace the negative with the positive. “I’m working on myself because I know that when I invest in my success, I have a positive impact on my family.”

4. Take Action to Back Up Those Claims!

This step is critically important! We must back up our claims. For example, if I identify as an athlete but continue to consume fried food, I don’t work out, I don’t prioritize sleep, water and all the things that I know are imperative to my success, I’m a fraud. We must take action that aligns with who we have determined is the best of who we could be. In that case, if I say that I’m an athlete, I do what athletes do! I move my body every day, eat healthy, prioritize sleep, I stretch, I make sure I’m hydrated, and I make healthy choices to fuel my body and mind. When we are aligned with who we say we are and our actions, we gain even greater confidence to reach our goals and dreams.

Everyone has limiting beliefs and negative self-talk challenges. How do you deal with those? Please share below!