How to build awesome self-confidence

As a former die hard Michael Jordan fan, I still get the chills when I watch this intro video (safe for work). It reminds me of the days when becoming a professional basketball player was still a career choice.

Or so I thought.

Anyway, Michael Jordan's birthday was yesterday so I figured I'd share a quote of his that has stuck with me.

He said, “You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”

Indeed.

If we don’t expect ourselves to stay consistent with our diet and exercise then we certainly won’t.

Expecting things of ourselves comes from self confidence.

I believe the best way to gain self confidence is to actually do the things we really want to do. To follow through on our intentions.

You know, all of those little (and big) promises we make to ourselves. It feels awesome when we make good on our own word. We start to believe in ourselves. We start to trust ourselves.

And we all know the feeling of having been lied to...by ourselves. It's not a good one.

Some people will promise everything to other people and never break their word...

Yet, some of those people will never keep their own promises. (Although I'm biased this is why I'm such a believer in accountability. I've seen what it can do first hand for countless people. This is why I know the MBT program works better than anything else out there.)

Here’s a thought:

Imagine if we kept every promise we made to ourselves? Imagine how we’d feel? Imagine how we'd look?

It would feel pretty empowering, right?

Of course, this is way easier said than done. This is like saying, "Just eat less and move more!"

Duh.

It's not so simple.

But, we can do a few things to make it more doable:

1. Committing to promises we know we can keep, no matter what.

I'd much rather you promise us that you're going to exercise two times per week and actually exercise two times than promise us you're going to exercise five times but exercise four. There's something very powerful about sticking to our own word. Part of our goal is to help you rebuild that trust and confidence in yourself.

2. Starting small. Really small.

Let's not say, "I'll never eat XYZ again." How about saying, "Tomorrow, I'm going to choose X instead."

Not doing something tomorrow is doable. Not doing something ever again isn't.

2A. Getting even smaller.

For some people, at this time, not doing something all day is daunting.

Let's use sugar as an example:

Instead of committing to not eating sugar all day, let's commit to not eating any sugar after dinner tonight. That's more doable.

Tip: Try having fruit instead. It's a powerful and effective replacement.

3. Keeping it small.

Once we start to feel the momentum on our side, it's easier to commit to bigger things. However, we only have so much willpower, no matter how unstoppable we feel. We don't want to get ahead of ourselves.

Marathons are run mile by mile, no matter how fast we feel. A slow and steady plan that you can stick with beats a "Lose 30 pounds in 3 days" type plan you definitely can't stick with.

4. Let's use human nature to our advantage.

The fact that we hate breaking promises to others is to our advantage because we have a system in place that works. (Hello, MBT!)

When you have MBT on your side, what you commit to has to get done...

Otherwise, you're going to have to 'own up' to your Body Tutor. The same person you have your initial phone consult with. The same person who will be with you on your journey day by day giving you support, encouragement and expert feedback.

(Note: MBT won't make you feel guilty. Nor is it shamed based accountability. We use what I call a 'Gentle Relentlessness'. We apply just the right amount of pressure. Most importantly, we help you get to the point where doing what you commit to feels effortless because we're going to help you build habits and behaviors that are sustainable.)

Consistently doing what we promised to ourselves is what leads to self-confidence. And when we know we have a system in place to make good on all of our promises (no matter how big or small), we feel very confident - almost, unstoppable.

-Adam