Are you being honest with yourself? If you are walking around and only acknowledging what you like about your life and ignoring the rest…you are fooling yourself. I mean, how do you expect to grow and be more when you do not acknowledge who you are now?

I can admit that it does feel good to ignore the BS in my life but that is only going to last but so long. You can only be happy for so long ignoring things that need to be dealt with and long term, it is not going to help you get to where you want to be. Right now, I am working on being one bad azzzzzz woman and ignoring the things that are keeping me from getting there is just a bad idea.

Look back at who you were 6 months ago…or 6 years ago. Are you impressed by you? Are you surprised at who you used to be? What you used to say? How you dressed, acted, what you wanted and how you reacted to life? We should look back, not to be sad about anything, but to see how far we have come. Celebrate your growth and get in position for more! Those things are the proof that you have change things for the better and you can continue to do so.

We need to come clean with ourselves and live our truth…. let’s see…..

• Take time to really reflect on you. I love to journal and I try to take time out to think about my life and check in with myself. Take a few minutes to reflect on your day. How did it go? What went right? What went wrong? How am I feeling about my day? Be honest with yourself but not judgmental or critical of yourself…that will not help at all.
• Admit when you make mistakes. I know a few people who do not hold themselves accountable and rarely acknowledge their mistakes. It is hard to heal relationships that way. Do not be afraid to admit when you haven’t made great decisions and haven’t said the best things to yourself or others. Only a person that admits their mistakes can learn from them and correct themselves. When we are comfortable and honest about who we are, our mistakes, and where we fall short…that is where our true self-esteem lies.
• Be sure to acknowledge the good and bad that you see. Ignoring your problems and/or shortcomings will not get them fixed. I think there is nowhere to go but down…or nowhere at all because when you are not honest with yourself those things can get bigger and get out of control. I am working on accepting all of me so that I give myself room to work on those things and not criticize myself and make things worse.
• Talk to someone you trust to be honest with you. Sometimes we need someone on the outside to tell us what they see. A family member or close friend will be able to give you a different perspective and call us on our BS when we need it.
• Do not over analyze! We do not always have to have some elaborate story about why things we see as negative have happened to us. They happened! We can either use them as a crutch to stay stagnant, or we can think about who we are today and choose to put our best foot forward. The good thing is that we do not have to understand the “whys” and “hows” of the things that occur in our lives completely, just enough for us to be sensible and realistic.

Looking back on how far you have come should be great motivation to do more and grow as much as you can in this life. We only get one of them!

I crave growth! I do a lot of self-reflection because looking at where I was…seeing where I am now…I want more! I know that I am capable of more! It has been great motivation for me and now I naturally look for ways to grow more…learn more…do more. I volunteer more. I do more of the things I wanna try even if i have to do them alone. Take trips. Just experience more in general and I love it! I am looking forward to more firsts in the future.

Does it shock you to really see how far you have come? Continue to be shocked about your growth. Growth is inevitable so we might as well celebrate every step up. Chance, luck, and opportunity is not just for someone else…believe that you can have what you desire and what you work to get. You can get that business started. You can meet the right person and those opportunities are out there for you too!

Ask for the things you want. Hey, if you are feeling a little frisky, demand the things you want. Why not? You never know. Go from saying “I can’t…” to saying, “How can I?”

We need to be excited about every bit of growth we can see happening. Life gives us opportunities to get excited about who we are today when we look back at who we were yesterday, last week, last month and even last year. We have leveled up!! You should be proud of yourself…for real!