When you want to start to transform your life, take one area at a time. Don’t try to do a makeover, or the subconscious will not cooperate. It has only so many resources to give to changes, and if it gets overwhelmed, it’ll throw up its hands, metaphorically speaking. Once you’ve incorporated one change, and it feels comfortable, then you can get started on another one. List the changes you want to make, and then prioritize them.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
by Linda-Ann Stewart
Do you procrastinate when it comes to taking action towards your vision? If so, you’re unintentionally telling yourself and the Law of Attraction that it’s not important. This diminishes your self-worth and reduces your chance of success. When you avoid your dream, you feel disappointed in yourself and empty inside. You rationalize that “It’s not time,” “I’m not ready,” “It’s too hard,” or “Maybe it won’t live up to my expectations.” So your dream remains out of reach simply because you’ve put it there.
You may think that by not trying, you don’t have to worry about failing. But if you don’t try, you’ve already failed. Committing to your vision isn’t always easy, because you do have to make some hard choices. There are so many possibilities out there for you, and you have to set aside the less important ones, so you can focus on your big dream. But when you say “No” to some of those options, you clarify what you want and start to say “Yes” to your dream.
For instance, when you want to save money towards the down payment of a house, you’ll have to curtail your discretionary spending. You’ll choose to eat out less, go to fewer concerts, and not buy some of the toys you normally would. Because of your vision of owning a home, you’ll prioritize saving money for your house. You’ll be able to do some of those things on special occasions, just not every day, week or month.
If your vision is to be healthier, exercise will be your foundation of this goal. You’ll have to give up sitting on the couch and watching TV or playing video games. A trip to the gym or getting outside for a run becomes more important. When you prioritize your dream, it builds self-esteem and self-respect. You’re showing yourself and the Law of Attraction that what you want counts.
However, dreams and visions aren’t set in stone. They shift and change as you grow and evolve. This is normal. You may find that you’ve outgrown the dream that you’ve had for ten years. For instance, you’ve always wanted to learn pottery. But when you take a class, you discover that you don’t have the patience to mold the clay.
You may start taking action towards your dream, and get steered into another, more appealing direction. For instance, a bookkeeper, which is generally a lonely job, discovers she enjoys interacting with groups and teaching bookkeeping classes. Or a network marketer learns he wants to promote his own products instead. Their original ideas didn’t match their expectations, but led to much more satisfying outcomes. But they never would have found them if they hadn’t followed through on their dreams.
Possibly, you’re trying to change your self-image to fit your dream. For example, you’ve always had a vision of yourself being a body builder, but it wasn’t a strong enough pull to get you to lift weights. Or, you wanted to be the person who played guitar in a band, but never learned to play the instrument. In these cases, it’s time to let go of that dream and say “Yes” to another one.
As you set and achieve the goals that move you forward, other parts of your life will also change. No one section of your life is separate from the others. Shifting one area creates movement in the others. For instance, people expect that when they change a habit, it’ll impact only that area of their life. But changing it affects all aspects of your life through a ripple effect.
When a person quits smoking, it influences most of their life. It alters the way they socialize with some of their friends, such as not smoking with them during breaks. They don’t use cigarettes for stress relief anymore, so they have to find other ways to cope. It changes the way they start and end their day, and everything in between and it improves their health. It’s not easy, but if they have a vision of what they want to accomplish with quitting, then they’ll be successful.
The same is true for someone who wishes to lose weight. If they want to just be able to fit into their swimsuit for summer, they’ll achieve that goal, but gain back the weight over winter. However, if being healthier and more slender is most important, then they’ll completely and permanently change their entire lifestyle.
They’ll eat healthier and begin to exercise. Initially, some people will be offended when they refuse pressure to have second helpings or dessert. But when they stand up for themselves and their health, it builds their self-esteem.
When you start taking steps towards your dream, you shift your mental and physical energy to support what’s most important to you. You’re focusing on what it is you want in your life. And your subconscious mind will begin to scan your world for opportunities to help you. The Law of Attraction will draw to you what you want.
There will probably be obstacles, but there will also be ways around them. Or you may have to take a break or step back to reassess your next move. But the only way to succeed is to keep moving forward. The way to gain clarity about what vision is right for you is to start taking action on it. Prioritize your vision, say “Yes” to it, and begin taking the steps to bring it into reality. You deserve it.
Affirmation:
I have a vision of what I want for myself. What I want for myself, the Universe also wants for me. I’m Divinely Guided in the right direction and to the right actions to fulfill my vision. I’m persistent and consistent and take the steps necessary. All of Life supports me and finds ways to benefit my vision and me.
Watch the accompanying Monthly Mindset Coaching video, The Persistence of Your Dream.
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“The subconscious mind will not take the trouble to work for those who do not believe in it.” ~ Theodore Simon Jouffroy, French philosopher.
If you don’t trust the subconscious to take a goal and find a way to manifest it, it won’t. By not believing in the subconscious’ creative powers, you’re giving it the direction to ignore your conscious choices. It will then only act on the overall tendency of your thought. The subconscious is the creative part of you. Believe it will work to solve your problems, using all of the Infinite’s resources, and it will act on them.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Many people ask me how long it takes to make a change or change a habit. As a rule of thumb, it takes three months for the change to be complete. The first month, you’re focusing on breaking the old habit. In the second month, you’re creating a new habit to take the place of the old one. The third month is when that new habit becomes comfortable and familiar. It takes about another three months for that new habit to really get settled into your consciousness. So persist and don’t give up when you’re making changes.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
The 10 Proven Habits of the Happiest People In The World
After studying the research on happiness, the author shares the interesting habits of happy people. They range from choosing happiness and mindset to taking care of themselves. If you cultivate these habits, you’ll be much happier and have more self-esteem.
Exercise May Be As Valuable As Good Genes In Lowering Dementia Risk
We’re learning just how important that exercise is in every area of our lives, from emotional and mental health to physical health. Now, there’s evidence that exercise can be as great an influence on disease as genetic predisposition. Although they still don’t know which exercise or how much is necessary, benefits may come from just walking 3 days a week.
How To Become More Mindful Using Nothing But A Journal
Mindfulness is instrumental in reducing stress and increasing creativity. Unfortunately, many people associate learning mindfulness with a spa, retreat or sitting and meditating. It can be accomplished that way, but there is a simple way to practice it that’s much easier. Using a simple journal and a pen can help you develop this beneficial ability.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Question: How many affirmations should be used at a time for a single goal?
Answer: Some people say to only use one phrase as an affirmation for a goal. I disagree. I like to write what Ernest Holmes, Joseph Murphy, and Catherine Ponder call a “spiritual mind treatment.” It can sometimes be a couple of pages long.
In it, I identify with the Source of all good, know that it’s mine, then state my desire, taking the time to convince my mind why it’s possible and why I deserve it, then give thanks that it is done. My affirmation covers many of the issues of whatever challenge I’m experiencing. By using a longer affirmation, I’m able to address the whole condition.
Since what I’m “treating” is my consciousness of good, I will read the long one at least twice a day (usually first thing in the morning and before bed). And then during the day, I’ll use some shorter, reinforcing phrase(s) to reinforce my new pattern of thinking.
That’s the way I’ve written my Affirmation Ebooks. I’ve written long affirmations for weight, abundance and self-acceptance, and then included shorter statements to trigger what the longer one addressed.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Affirmations change the way you think about your life. They act on the basic beliefs and attitudes that prompt your reactions, and align with the Source of all Good. But to convince your subconscious that you actually want to change, you must also take actions to reinforce your positive statements. It doesn’t matter what kind of action it is. It just needs to show your subconscious that you’re a willing participant in the transformation. This will make the change much quicker and easier for you.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Your self-image affects everything about you and your life. The way you perceive yourself filters how you view and respond to the world. It’s built of beliefs, and beliefs can be changed. Watch and listen to this short meditation that will help you start to shift how you think about yourself so that it’s more positive.
Transcript:
Your self-image is how you perceive yourself to be. And it affects your decisions, actions, attitudes and relationships. Your self-image is the filter for who you think you are and how you respond to situations around you. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy that you make true. But you can also change it because it’s build of beliefs. And beliefs can be changed. Here’s a short meditation to get you started.
If you want, close your eyes. Take a deep breath, let it out, and relax.
Consider what is right about you. Think of the things you’ve done that have been right and good. Reflect on what’s good, valuable and worthwhile about you. Contemplate what you like about yourself – your appearance, talents, characteristics. People view you as a good person. Think of all the compliments you’ve ever been given. Accept them. Allow yourself to feel the warmth of their glow. Now, consider the person you want to be. What do you need to believe to be that person? What if you start believing it now? What would change? You can start making those changes right now. How would that feel?
Open your eyes. When your negative self-talk starts to bring you down, shift your attention to what’s positive about you. This will help to improve your self-image and will make massive changes in your world.
Read the article, 3 Steps to Improving Your Self-Image, that inspired this meditation.
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by Linda-Ann Stewart
Self-esteem is a basic necessity for all success in personal and professional life. When you like and respect yourself, then you’re likely to make the choices that lead to creating the outcomes that you want. Your self-worth is created by your attitudes about yourself based on what ideas you accepted as a child and the things you tell yourself as an adult.
Your self-image plays a large part in the development of your self-esteem. Your self-image is formulated from your experiences, judgments, labels you’ve accepted, and your talents or your liabilities. These have helped to shape your beliefs about yourself that feed into your self-worth.
You always act like the person you believe yourself to be. How do you see yourself? Do you perceive yourself as a competent and dynamic individual? Or do you doubt yourself and your abilities? Do you focus on what you’ve done wrong, or what didn’t turn out the way you wanted? This will erode your self-image and contribute to a low self-esteem.
If you have a strong, healthy self-image, then you make healthy decisions that support your vision, dreams and goals. You’ll exercise to stay fit, eat healthy, and avoid substances that would impair your health. These choices may be difficult or inconvenient, such as quitting smoking, ending a one-sided relationship, or finding another job that gives you a better chance to advance in your career. But you protect your health and well-being because you view yourself as someone who is proactive.
Your self-image forms the filter through which you view yourself and how you respond to situations around you. It demands that you remain consistent with your concept of yourself. Suppose you perceive yourself as a supportive person, who likes to make everyone happy. If so, to be congruent, you won’t stand up for yourself when you’re taken advantage of, even at the cost of your welfare.
For instance, Clarisse owned a service-based business. Initially, her attitude was that she offered a service that happened to be a business. With that approach, she was supportive, sympathetic and enabling of everyone who came to her. But her customers took advantage of her after she’d done work for them. After promising to pay, they reneged, saying they couldn’t afford it. Her business began to flounder.
To be successful, she had to shift her view of herself as a businessperson. She realized she wouldn’t be able to help anyone if she wasn’t in business. She changed her inner position to one of being a businessperson who provides a service. With this outlook, she made decisions based on what was good for the business.
To fulfill her desire to be of service to those who needed it, she selectively provided her service pro-bono to a client every once in a while. But they no longer were the majority of her clientele. Her business began to thrive.
Your self-image is malleable. You can impact it, making it stronger and more effective. But to do so, you’ll have to let go of some imbedded, old ideas. They may even be ones that you value, but they’re not helping you or your self-esteem.
Clarisse had to let go of her self-concept of being of service to everyone who needed her. That way was destroying her business. One major change she made was insisting on payment up front. She also set and kept boundaries, in the form of policies. If someone violated a policy, she refused to work with them. And she refused to take responsibility for others’ decisions that prevented them from living up to their agreements with her.
If you want to have more impact, be more effective and more successful, the first place to start is with improving your self-image. Here are a few suggestions of what to do.
1. Let go of the judgments and labels from your childhood. They belong in the past and don’t reflect who you are now. Besides, they were simply someone’s, usually mistaken, opinion and don’t define you in the present.
2. Stop of focusing on what’s wrong with you. You’ll always be able to find something to criticize in yourself or what you do. Break that habit as it’s not helpful. Instead, focus on what’s right about you.
3. Make a list compliments that you’ve received. Don’t dismiss them as untrue or someone just being nice. Accept that they’re true of you.
No matter what your dreams, you’ll always make decisions, and act, in alignment with your self-image. To become the person you want to be, and achieve your dreams, you’ll need to change it so it supports what you want in your life. You can do it. Just consider the life that awaits you and stay focused on your dreams.
Affirmation:
The Universe loves and approves of me as I am. I accept my true worth. It’s safe to let go of old concepts that aren’t true of who I am. I now acknowledge the things that I do that are good and right. People like me, and I accept that I am likeable. I now shift my self-image to reflect the person I want to be.
Watch the Monthly Mindset Coaching Tip Video, Meditation to Improve Your Self-Image, that was inspired by this article.
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Stake Your Claim: Exploring the Gold Mine Within
By Emmet Fox
This book was the first one by this author that I ever read. The practical, spiritual advice from it made him one of my favorite metaphysical authors. Dr. Fox was a well-known spiritual teacher and his insight is timeless.
The title of the book refers to staking your claim to the good that you want in your life. Short, to the point essays about peace, prosperity, empowerment and much more form the chapters of this book. Each essay addresses a different subject, and stands alone in its wisdom.
The counsel in this book will uplift your thoughts, help you gain a more positive, spiritual outlook on what ever difficulty you might be experiencing, and help you live a richer, fuller life. Because of the short essays, this is the perfect book to read in the morning to get the day started right, just before going to sleep, or at any other time when you only have a few minutes to spare.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
