Every day, we spend roughly eight hours sleeping and 16 hours staying awake.
But are you truly awake?
In difficult times, we focus all our attention on keeping our heads above water. Self-reflection doesn’t even make it to our priority list. This is when unhelpful beliefs grab the opportunity to set up camp in your mind.
As a result, you internalize unhelpful ideas and get caught up in things that don’t matter.
You spend years, decades even, living life believing those unhelpful ideas. You make decisions based on inaccurate assumptions. You move from one thing to the next without processing what’s happening.
Self-Reflection Helps You Exercise Your True Power!
We often don’t have control of many of the things that happen to us, but we do have the power to choose our response to our circumstances.
Self-reflection allows you to exercise this power.
Are You Good at Self-Reflection? How to Start Your Practice
It’s time to wake up!
Dive deep into yourself.
Try to narrow down the experiences that left a major impact on you.
- What is that one event that changed you forever?
- How did you end up with the beliefs you currently have?
Take the time to think about what works, and what doesn’t.
Self-reflection requires a willingness to be vulnerable. It’s not easy to peel back layers of conditioning.
Not sure where to start? Try some self-reflection journal prompts:
25 Reflection Questions: Daily Questions to Prompt Spiritual Reflection
Building Your Self-Reflection Practice
Practice observing yourself. Take notice of:
- Your interactions with others
- Your response to your own thoughts
- The assumptions you make in stressful situations
This act of introspection enables you to find the opportunities for positive change.
Unless we take the time to intentionally reflect on our behaviors and tendencies, we won’t have the insights we need to make thoughtful and deliberate choices.
We won’t be able to hold ourselves accountable.
Self-Reflection Can Be Painful
The process of looking inward can bring a lot of painful emotions.
It may feel as though you’re reopening old wounds.
Never forget that you have the ability to calmly observe what’s going on inside of you without getting carried away by your emotions.
Often, we judge our emotions and try to rationalize them too quickly.
We don’t allow ourselves to fully feel our emotions.
Making space for your emotions allows you to uncover the secondary emotions (e.g., shame, and guilt) lurking below the surface of the primary emotions (e.g., frustration and fear).
Bring the Unconscious to Your Awareness
You can’t always believe everything you think.
Stay connected to your breath as various thoughts and feelings arise.
The more you improve your self-awareness the more you find yourself experiencing “aha moments” where you feel confident about your ability to choose the best course of action.
You begin to notice programmed behaviors and patterns of emotional reaction you had never noticed before.
Shine light on beliefs and behaviors that are currently unconscious.
By bringing them into your awareness, you can achieve greater clarity on what’s best for you.
Return to your center and reignite the spark within.
You deserve to live life being fully awake.
Live each day from a place of trust.
Get ready to welcome the goodness coming your way!
Throwback to November 2023 – Building Self-Confidence
No two phases in life are the same.
You will come across new opportunities, find beautiful surprises, and meet new people.
There will also be unexpected situations, periods of uncertainty, and unfulfilled desires.
Regardless of what life throws at you, you need self-confidence to ride it out.
Building Self-Confidence
When life knocks you down, your negative thoughts paint a gloomy outlook on your life.
- You stop believing in yourself.
- You live life with a constant sense of fear in your heart.
- You’re assuming that you will never find happiness again.
No matter what happens, life keeps flowing. You’ve got to pick yourself up, restore hope, and move forward!
The way we see ourselves largely influences the way we live our lives.
Self-Confidence is a Skill You Can Learn
It’s natural to feel defeated and weak after going through difficult times. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.
Self-confidence is a skill, after all. And, skills can be learned.
Developing the skill of self-confidence can help you:
- conquer your fears
- harness new opportunities
- and live life with passion and purpose
For the month of November, challenge yourself to build your confidence.
Accepting yourself the way you are now is a great first step to finding the source of confidence within yourself.
Ruminating over your mistakes or obsessing over other people’s approval keeps you stuck in a self-esteem trap.
Do not allow other people’s hurtful words to shape your self-image. Have faith in yourself and what you have to offer! You’re doing the best you can with what you’ve got.
You will be okay even if you fail.
You will be fine even if things don’t work out. Most of the time, the actual outcome isn’t as bad as your negative thoughts may tell you.
Start Small. But Get Started!
Do more of what scares you.
- Set boundaries with other people.
- Stand up for what you want.
- Go to the movies alone.
- Go out to eat alone at a restaurant.
Release all fears about what other people might think of you. Be comfortable in your own skin.
Taking risks and trying something new can help you get better at making difficult decisions.
Practice Building Your Self-Confidence This Month!
If you’re not ready to face your fears yet, try something easier, such as adjusting your body language.
A few tweaks to your body language can help you to feel more confident and improve your self-image.
Stand up straight, pull your shoulders back, and keep your chin up.
Avoid slouching.
Remember that you do have the ability to realize your true potential and stay confident, even in the most difficult situations. Unlocking your inner confidence may take time, but it is possible.
Believe in yourself. You’ve got this.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
