As the doubt tornado hits me, I am swept up in its massive power; those are the days I struggle to get out of bed. I feel like nothing I do is making an impact. That no one is listening. The tornado is threatening to tear through not only my day but every shred of confidence I have worked so hard to attain. My need to protect myself is so strong that I want to hide underground for a while so I can fortify myself to stand strong against the eye of the storm. But how does one start the work that so desperately needs to be done?
1) Read your Power Statements
Starting off by getting back into a headspace where I feel loved, important, and worthy. I need to feel my impact is greater than myself. If I don’t feel those things, my success in the following steps will be extremely limited. So I start by reading or saying my power statements aloud to myself to my coach. Audibly hearing them strengthens the statement – ingraining them further into my spirit, mind, heart, and body…. Yes, our bodies listen to these messages and internalize them, too.
Always be careful how you talk about yourself – every ounce of you is listening, absorbing, and believing. If you are unsure what a power statement is, join me for a FREE webinar to learn what they are and how to make and use them.
2) Listen to the Messages You Are Telling Yourself
Now that I’m grounded and hopeful, it’s time to turn the dial up and tune in at high frequency to the messages I had been telling myself prior to practicing my power statements. Was it fear-based? Was I shaming myself with negative self-talk? Understanding the exact storyline you are feeding yourself and pinpointing the why behind the tale gives us so much more insight into the emotions that need to be eliminated from the messages. Removing the emotion from the situation turns that negative internal dialogue from fact to fiction.
3) Ask Yourself the Hard Questions
Analyzing the source of these self-defeating bylines is important – it helps us to validate their power by stripping it away. Sounds like an oxymoron, right? But in all truth, it’s when we recognize the power we give to something that we learn we can control it.
Here are some good go questions to start with:
- Is this a belief that I created for or about myself, or did someone else push it onto me?
- Do these core messages stem from something that happened to me earlier on in my life? Is this message from a learned reaction? (We know these as impact moments).
- What am I protecting myself from?
- Have I dealt with this in the past? If yes, how so? Was I successful?
Throughout this experience, make sure you are staying open-minded and nonjudgmental as you both ask these questions and process your response.
Self Discovery with Support
Sometimes you aren’t alone in your underground bunker… there are others there to help you through the panic and the pain. They always say there is safety in numbers, so know that this may be an easier self-rescue mission if done with a group of people that love and care about you.
Please keep in mind that this is hard, scary work that can be overwhelming with the tornado spinning overhead. I am here if you need someone to light the path back to the mainland. You are never truly alone. Reach out to me at courage@rebrandyoucoaching.com
4) Land Clarity Before You Act
After I’ve answered some very difficult questions, I feel clearer about the steps I need to take next. Clearer on how to brave the storm intact. You can’t shoulder your way through a tornado – the results are disastrous… just like if you try to push through without clarity. Get clear about your findings first and then come up with your exit strategy. You will not only survive the dust-up but come out a better, stronger, more confident person on the other side.
