Requirement for Healthy Self-Esteem
by Jane Powell
“It’s always uncomfortable to grow.”
Many of the things that are required to build and maintain healthy self-esteem can be uncomfortable, but the truth is they are essential. The good news is, with practice, uneasiness subsides and they become part of who you are.
Saying “No,” and asserting yourself, asking for what you want, expressing your true feelings, saying positive things about yourself, letting someone love and nurture you…these may all be things that are uncomfortable. But, only at first.
One sure way to conquer discomfort is to simply do what is uncomfortable. Step away from complacency and dare to grow and develop yourself today. Start by choosing something that you have been putting off. Then, just do it!
Do you spend a lot of time feeling anxious and stressed? Does your body have its own way of tightening? Do your shoulders feel tense and hard? Maintaining this state for periods of time can do all kinds of unpleasant things to your mind and your body.
It’s essential that you relax and take care of yourself. Here’s how. Have you ever watched a sleeping baby? Babies breathe in and out, with their tummy muscles. As adults, we hold our tummies in, focused on that perfect figure. But, breathing slowly, from your tummy, is the first step to total relaxation.
With that in mind, try this simple escape. Find a comfortable chair in a quiet place and just breathe, in and out, like a sleeping baby or a confident adult. Tune into the rhythm of your breathing. Shun away other thoughts. Within minutes your shoulders will relax, the anxiousness will subside and you will feel the stress leave your body. And, all you had to do was breathe like a baby.
Feels pretty good, doesn’t it?
Decisively to life
Every achievement is an idea that has been acted upon. Every success story is a story about doing what must be done to make the success happen.
A single idea can end up being worth millions of dollars. Yet for that to happen, it cannot remain merely an idea.
Sustained and focused action is the way wishes and intentions are transformed into results and achievements. It’s great to have a clever, creative idea, but only when you actually do something about it.
It’s powerful and effective to know what to do, but only when you actually do it. Dreams come true not just because they’re nice and desirable, but because they’re worked on.
Don’t keep your greatest possibilities locked away in your thoughts. Bring those possibilities to life with your actions.
When you have a great idea, or a beautiful intention, give it the love, respect and expression it deserves. Act on it, now and for as long as it takes, and bring it decisively to life.
Ralph Marston
