Defining the Me I Want to Be

Human beings think in pictures. It’s why we developed language, to get those pictures in our minds into other people’s heads. We use words to trigger those pictures: nouns for people, places or things; and adjectives act as descriptors to clarify the pictures. One of the biggest challenges we face is in how we describe our “self” – both to ourselves and to others.

How many times have you been told, “Just be yourself”? Most likely, dozens of times, by friends, family, teachers, coaches, and others – usually in an effort to help us get out of our own way! Now, if you have stopped to think about it, you probably have many different “selves” – we all do. So how do we know which self is the best one to be?

All of us have many possible selves. Some aspects of our personalities are active and obvious, and these aspects we call current reality, or who we are right now. But there are many other possibilities, or possible selves, that we can strengthen and bring into current reality, if we choose to.

Think for a minute. What is your best self like? Can you list the qualities that make “you at your best” different from the ordinary, everyday you? Because once you bring these qualities into your awareness, into your consciousness, you can deliberately set out to make your “everyday” self, more like your “best” self. It’s taking these words and using them to give yourself a better definition of “Me.”

Using the techniques of affirmation, visualization, and control of your self-talk, it is not as difficult as you might think. These aspects give us a pattern to follow, that make change easier to accomplish. You see, we move toward and become like what we think about. In other words, “Where thought goes, energy flows.” It’s a matter of managing your mind.

So, focus on those aspects of yourself that you would like to see more of. Do it in a systematic way, and do it over and over, every day. Soon, being yourself will adjust automatically, meaning you will be your best self, naturally.