Losing Weight and Building Confidence

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Article Title:

Losing Weight and Building Confidence

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Having confidence in your goal is important. It's tough to

stick to something we don't believe we can do, after all.

Just like all of our other behaviors, confidence also is a

habit. It's a way of thinking that, if we cultivate it

properly, will become automatic. People with more confidence

try more things, take more risks and have more experiences

overall than those of us without it. So let's look at a few

ways we can cultivate that kind of confidence for ourselves.

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Distribution Date and Time: 2010-08-19 11:00:00

Written By: Larry Tobin

Copyright: 2010

Contact Email: mailto:larry.tobin@...

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Losing Weight and Building Confidence

Copyright © 2010 Larry Tobin

Habit Changer

http://www.HabitChanger.com/

Having confidence in your goal is important. It's tough to stick

to something we don't believe we can do, after all. We've

talked in other articles about how easy it is to get frustrated,

and about controlling negative thoughts in our effort to build up

good and healthy habits. We've also talked about rewards and

incentives, but we haven't really spoken about the best means of

confidence boosting and building a habit of strong thinking

itself.

Just like all of our other behaviors, confidence also is a habit.

It's a way of thinking that, if we cultivate it properly, will

become automatic. People with more confidence try more things,

take more risks and have more experiences overall than those of

us without it. So let's look at a few ways we can cultivate that

kind of confidence for ourselves.

Confidence Booster 1 - Knowing Your Abilities

Honesty is the most important part of having a proper confidence

habit. There are things we definitely can do, and things we

definitely cannot. We can believe all we want that eating while

standing up " doesn't count, " but the calories still go in!

Similarly, just because we're afraid that we can't do something

doesn't necessarily mean it's true. We might be convinced that

we'll drown the moment we go into a pool, but stepping into the

water will prove we're wrong.

To that end, sit down with yourself and go over your goals and

steps you've broken your diet plan down into. Look at each one,

and come up with two different things that might get in your way

of achieving them. Then immediately write down one way you know

you can circumvent each potential problem. If it's a friend who

insists on super whippy frothy coffee desserts, consider asking

them if you can meet at a different venue while you're working

on your weight loss.

Do this every single day. Pick out a specific goal, one obstacle

and a resolution to that obstacle every morning when you get

started. This will get your mind in the habit of thinking about

your abilities and what you can do with them, rather than the

problems and confidence-crushing hindrances that slow you down.

Make sure you do it at the same time every morning to strengthen

the habit-building potential of it.

Confidence Booster 2 - Review Your Successes

Nothing in the world boosts confidence like success. Verbal

affirmations of your self worth are a good step, but they're

infinitely more powerful when you have something to reflect on

when you make them. Equally, successes become more meaningful

when rewarded with congratulations, yet often we are the ones

least inclined to congratulate ourselves. Stop withholding

well-deserved praise from yourself and start acknowledging what

you've done right.

Whenever you take a positive step toward your goal, whether

that's refusing the large portion for the small one or

successfully exercising the " wait 20 minutes " option during a

snack craving, compliment yourself for it. Whether aloud or in

the privacy of your thoughts, praise yourself for a job well

done.

At the end of the day, review all the successes you made. You've

probably already gone over the mistakes, so those don't need

retreading. Instead, focus on each little victory and take pride

in it, knowing that it helped you one step along your way.

Confidence Booster 3 - Set Goals and Hit Them Again

Repetition and routine are the best methods of solidifying a

good, powerful habit that will help when losing weight. We've

discussed setting goals, and complimenting yourself for achieving

them, so now let's talk about repeating them. After all, what's

more impressive - hitting the bull's eye, or hitting it 10

times?

To that end, take some time when you wake up to remember the

successes from yesterday. After pausing to compliment yourself

again for them, affirm that you're going to take the same step

today. You did it once, after all; it's entirely within your

grasp to do it again. If you think you can, go a step further and

affirm an expansion to the goal as well.

This pattern will help you build a habit of consistently seeing

your accomplishments as something that you can do and have done,

and make you want to do them again. Then, as you get comfortable

hitting the mark, you'll naturally want to expand it, hitting a

higher goal, until it becomes the one you meet every day.

Confidence Booster 4 - Review the Plan

An interesting study recently showed that people who focus only

on their end goal don't tend to succeed as much as those who

focus on the goal and the steps in between. Yes, we all want to

get to a place where we feel better, and fit into a nicer set of

clothes, but if we choose to focus only on the little swimsuit,

we're going to inevitably look at ourselves and think, " How

will I ever... "

Remember that you have a plan. You're not trying to make a leap;

you've got many small steps in between that you're going to

take. You don't have to lose fifty pounds today; you just have

to replace your usual afternoon candy bar with a healthy

sandwich, or a pack of low-salt nuts. You can take that step -

that's easy! By reviewing the plan, and focusing both on the

intermediate steps AND the goal, you make the goal seem that much

more approachable, and you will find your confidence soaring.

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Larry Tobin is the co-creator of

http://www.HabitChanger.com/ offering effective

and empowering solutions for stopping stress.

Try our 42-day weight loss program at

http://www.habitchanger.com/losingweight