Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do...

Have you ever felt uncertainty as to your capabilities? Maybe you've had people tell you that you would never accomplish or amount to anything. From the time we are young and into adulthood, we receive negative comments that chip away at our belief foundation. These negative comments can tear down walls that support our inner faith.

We've all been compared to other's and when we don't measure up it can cause stress. Imagine, if you will, playing youth sports. You're doing your best. You make a mistake and you can hear the comments  from not only your coach and teammates, you also hear the spectator comments. If your play is what caused the loss of the game, you internalize the feeling of being a failure and of letting your team down.

So how do you migrate away from having a defeatist mentality and moving toward becoming confident? To be confident means to have faith in oneself or to have a belief that one will act in a right, proper, or effective way; it's the state of being certain; a state of mind or a manner marked by easy coolness and freedom from uncertainty, diffidence, or embarrassment.

Isn't it interesting that the word confidence contains the word "con" in it? Con means to swindle, manipulate (i.e. a con artist, a con game); it's something used deceptively to gain another's trust. Another way of looking at it is that you have to "con" or convince yourself that you are not what others think of you. Just because someone tries to put you down doesn't mean that you have to roll over and accept what you are being told.

There is a world of opportunity out there waiting for you and what you have to offer. With the change of one letter, you are able to turn confidence into "Can"fidence. You can do whatever you set your mind to doing. You just have to believe in yourself. Tell yourself repeatedly, "I can do it". If you make a mistake, so what? Mistakes are learning and growing opportunities. The shame in making a mistake is to continue to repeat the mistake.

As you begin to build your faith and belief in yourself, you'll begin to soar with your new "can"fidence. Others will take notice of the change in you.They may feel threatened and may try to manipulate you with negativity. Allow their negative comments to fall on deaf ears. As others try to tell you what you can't do, smile and say, "watch me"!!