Some coworkers have lots of awards, diplomas, plaques, and ribbons in their offices. Sometimes it is hard not to feel like a loser.
I’m sure you’re not a loser. I believe you may not be giving yourself enough credit. Your self-esteem reflects how positively you feel about yourself.
In my self-esteem seminar I have participants fill out a Past Accomplishments Reference. Participants need to list no less than 25 past accomplishments from when they were a little bitty kid until today. They list every award, certificate, plaque, trophy, ribbon, license, talent, ability, skill, acts of kindness, volunteer activities; anything they should have been pat on the back – job well done.
It only takes a few minutes to write, but it is a resource you can use for years.
I ask them to keep the list close. Don’t tape it outside your office door and insist people need to read it to see how cool you are – then you will talk to them.
But keep your past accomplishments reference close at hand.
Then the next time you face a challenge or an obstacle, review your past accomplishments reference and read 25 stories where you were the hero or heroine in every one of them, and you will see you have accomplished great things. You will see this obstacle as just an opportunity to put something else on the list.
You may have been too modest or you may have set the bar too high to appreciate your own accomplishments and achievements.
Self-esteem is tender and delicate. Bolster your self-esteem by privately giving yourself the credit you deserve. Human beings are remarkable. You are remarkable. And you have done remarkable things. You just need to keep a record and occasionally remind yourself.
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