Every day I talk to accomplished, high achieving women leading in their industries and almost everyone is dealing with negative thinking on some level. Whether it's finances, work-life-balance, or maintaining positive relationships, negative thoughts can make us less confident, less ambitious, and less likely to take action.
And if you've ever heard you're a perfectionist, promotion ready, talented, or high achiever but still feel inadequate or like a fraud, you've likely faced imposter syndrome.
If that's you, I want to help you take action, be more confident and attack negative thoughts in your life. I've been writing about the steps to thinking more positively about your life and address the immediate issues that can trigger negative feelings, stress, and anxiety.
How you view your beliefs about yourself and your life will determine the goals you are willing to set and what actions you'll take to make them happen.
Why not recognize your self-sabotaging thoughts and learn how to correct them? The first step is noticing them. Some common self-limiting thoughts are:
● "I'm not executive material. I don't look like a CEO."
● "I messed up my chance. I don't deserve another."
● "People like me don't get those types of jobs."
● "I can't do that. I'm not qualified."
● "I wish I could do that, but I know I don't have the money to do it."
If you noticed some of your limiting thoughts in the examples above, here's how you can take steps to GET UNSTUCK from negative thinking:
1. See yourself differently. Avoid comparing yourself. If you see yourself as "poor" financially, ask yourself, compared to who? Surely if you're reading this you have access to the internet and are already more privileged then others. This first shift is critical because if you allow yourself to think you are "less qualified," you won't advocate for yourself as you would if you felt deserving. Instead, try thinking of any gaps between where you are and where you want to go as opportunities to learn, grow, and be innovative.
2. Take action. When you continually move towards your goals, you'll gain the momentum to keep going. Rather than get stuck thinking you can't achieve success, decide on the steps you'll take to take to ensure you do.
○ Let's use the example of feeling less qualified. What if you asked your boss for recommendations on where to focus to be ready for the next level in your career? By getting more information you can be confident your actions will have your desired impact and avoid wasting time over complicating or over correcting.
3. Be your own best friend. Self-love is the best love. You go with you everywhere, so give yourself the benefit of kind words and staying optimistic. Practice noticing negative thoughts, like "I can't..." and replacing them with positive affirmations such as, "I can do this."
To build your confidence, take action! When you find yourself saying you'll "never" do something, SHIFT your words to say that you can, and then do it. If you take action, you can turn those negatives into positives, and boost your self-esteem. Trust that you can accomplish, succeed, and win over self-limiting thoughts. You've done it before, you'll do it again.
