Step 9 - Believe in yourself

The number one problem that keeps people from winning in the US today is lack of belief in themselves – Arthur L Williams, entrepreneur
Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can. – Richard Bach, best-selling author

You all know how much I love scientific research! Well, there was a study done in Texas on patients with bad knees whose only hope was surgery. All the patients were told that they’d be operated on to scrape out the knee joint. Some of the patients were genuinely operated on and their knee joints were scraped. Another group was given the anaesthetic but then the surgeons only made the incisions and sewed up the knees again without doing anything. After two years, this group of patients reported the same amount of pain relief as the group who underwent the actual surgery. You see, all the patients believed that they would be well after the surgery and they were. This just goes to show that our beliefs can change our body’s physiology.

One of my favourite examples of believing in yourself is the story of Roger Bannister, the man who first ran the mile in less than four minutes. Before he did it in 1954, almost everyone considered it impossible. Together with physical training, he “saw” himself breaking the record over and over again. (For more on visualisation, read the April issue of Achieving Your Goals). As a result, he developed a belief that he would do it. When he broke the record, he also broke the mental barrier in other runners as they also began to believe that it could be done. Amazingly, in the next 6 years, 36 other runners also ran sub four-minute miles.

Let these examples inspire you to also believe that you can achieve your goals. All of us already have some good beliefs, e.g. I’m a good listener, I’m good with my hands, I can talk to people easily, I’m good with numbers, etc. The next step is working on those disempowering beliefs. Do these sound familiar? I’m too old, I’m too quiet, I’ll never lose this weight, I’m not clever enough, I don’t have a degree (hello! 20% of America’s millionaires never set foot in college), etc. You must challenge them to overcome them.

I leave you with this wonderful quote:
You have to believe in yourself when no one else does. That’s what makes you a winner. – Venus Williams, tennis champion and gold medalist

Action steps for the month
1. Which of your current beliefs are working for you? Keep saying those things!
2. Which beliefs do you need to address so that you can reach your goals? Challenge and replace them with empowering beliefs.

'Til next time…

Enjoy success
Marcia Francois
Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it: Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/