YOU ARE WHAT YOU...

a) "YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT"

b) "YOU ARE WHAT YOU DO"

c) "YOU ARE WHAT YOU TELL YOURSELF"


Self-esteem is how we feel about ourselves. Our culture is obsessed with self-esteem. How to get it, how to boost it, how to make little Johnny on the soccer field feel it.

I'll let you in on a little secret. The only person who can give you self-esteem is...wait for it...YOU.
(Kinda self-explanatory, eh?)

And yet, you would be amazed at how many people (grown or otherwise) don't know this.

In reality there is only one saying:

YOU ARE WHAT YOU CHOOSE!

You are the sum total of your choices. (EVEN IF OTHERS HAVE MESSED WITH YOUR LIFE - HOW YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE BEYOND THAT = YOU.) And that sum total will strike you as either good or bad and that is what determines if you have good self-esteem or poor self-esteem.

You are what you CHOOSE to eat. Your health depends very much on your choices.

You are what you CHOOSE to do. To do your homework. Help that person clean up. Walk away. It's all up to you.

You are what you CHOOSE to tell yourself.


This is a hard concept to get your head around. But once you do - it will make your life 100% better. It's right up there with CHOOSING if the world is friendly or not.

We get all sorts of messages about who or what we are: good and bad. From teachers, family members, friends society - the media... Guess what? Only one opinion in the end matters. YOURS. You will decide what you believe - positive or negative. Our brains can't help it - it compiles data and analyzes it...all the time. So if you don't take control and CHOOSE what to believe you will start believing the data coming in from other people.

Now - don't throw out the good with the bad. If your coach has some helpful comments on how to throw a slider you should CHOOSE to hear her and act accordingly. Your game will improve. You'll win the World Series, etc. However, if the coach says "You Dummy, here's how you throw a slider..." CHOOSE to disregard the negative comment. What does she know about your personhood? If you've made it this far in life and your reading something that will improve your life - - you're no dummy.

This is much harder than it sounds. We are attuned to the negative. Just look at the news.

But you are not the news. You are the Master of Your Brain and you are going to be selective about what information you feed it - especially when it comes to the topic of YOU!

And be careful - because usually the one hardest on you...is you. So you have to teach yourself how to "talk" to you.

Go to your mirror every morning and look at yourself and say those positive mantra's out loud. ("I am a good person." "I am loveable." "I am smart." On every break from school or work - go over them in your head for a month. Believe them. They will change your life.)

So when you make a bad throw ,DON'T THINK automatically, "I'm an idiot. I'll never be able to do this..." Instead, CHOOSE to say, "Wow, that didn't go as I planned. How can I do better? I know I can do better."

Mirror, every morning.

Trust us.

*And if you don't like who you have chosen to be...choose differently!