Welcome to Motivational Mondays!
First things first, what is Motivational Mondays? Just like it sounds, to motivate, to empower, and to encourage you on the first day of a fresh week. I don't know about you but Mondays can be a drag for me, so sometimes words of encouragement and positivity are helpful to start my day off right.
Motivational Monday's topic is: Give Yourself Credit.
If you are anything like me you are your own worst critic and nothing you do is ever done well enough. Having so much self-doubt and not giving myself credit for what I accomplished would cause me to feel so discouraged and I would lose interest and inspiration quickly. It got to the point where I would find myself stuck in the same place mentally and emotionally for so long that it was almost easier to give up.
What I have learned over the years is that I had to give myself credit for all of the things that I have accomplished, the big and the small. In doing so I found the encouragement to keep pushing forward. Recently, I made a list of all the things that I have accomplished and I was able to see just how much it helped me to stay encouraged by visually seeing those accomplishments. Everyone's accomplishments are different for some just being able to walk, talk, and breathe on their own is an accomplishment while for others it could be climbing a mountain, running a marathon, or becoming CEO.
Here are Some of My Accomplishments:
Waking up this morning.
Starting this Blog.
Losing 30 pounds.
Overcoming the trials life has thrown my way
Completing my Senior Fashion Show at Meredith College in 2016.
Paying off my credit card debt.
Buying my first car by myself.
Finishing school and graduating with two degrees.
Developing a healthy relationship with both parents.
Helping others when in need
Don’t compare your accomplishments to someone else. The goals that you set are different from everyone else for a reason. Comparing someone else to yourself will only make you jealous and can discourage or even take you from the path that God has you set on. The bible tells us “Each of you must examine your own actions. Then you can be proud of your own accomplishments without comparing yourself to others. Assume your own responsibility.” Galatians 6:4-5. The truth is that you don’t truly know how much or what a person had to go through to get to where they are today. Everyone is different and what may be simple or easy for some, can be difficult or nearly impossible for others. Instead, give 100% in everything you do by putting forward your best effort because you can only get back what you put in.
“Appreciate how far you’ve come. You’ve been through a lot. But you’ve grown a lot too. Give yourself credit for your strength and resilience”
-Anonymous
This quote is so true. I think that oftentimes we become so busy with our daily lives that we forget to see just how far we have traveled from the person we used to be. Every day, I am growing, and I am not the same person that I once was. I can be the first to say that I have been through some serious pain throughout the course of my 28 years on this earth, things that should have made me bitter, and hateful. The bible tells us “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17. We are allowed to grow and be transformed, you don’t have to be the same that you once were.
“The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself”
-Maya Angelou
I think this is another true quote. Many people do not realize just how powerful a thought is. It is just like what we discussed in the previous Motivational Monday’s post # 2: Speak Life in Everything You Do, and in Weekly Topic Saturday’s #3: Mindfulness A Skill That’s Learned. The mind and the tongue are powerful weapons, that is why you must always be mindful of the things you say as well as the things that you think. The bible also tells us, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” Romans 12:2
If you think negatively then all you will see is the negatives in yourself, instead, think positively. One of my good friends told me when I was feeling down, positivity brings positives. This is something that has stuck with me and just by changing the way that I think and process things has made me a much happier and healthier person.
Don’t talk down about yourself, you are more than your mistakes. You are more than a conqueror. Don’t believe what others say about you, sometimes they are jealous and want what you have. Think highly of yourself and give yourself credit.
I challenge you this week to make a list of your accomplishments, big or small and hang them up somewhere where you can see them daily.
Join the conversation and drop a comment below about what some of your accomplishments are.
**I hope everyone has a safe and blessed week and I will see you all on Saturday for our Weekly Topic Saturdays**
~Just Breathe...A Golden Dream~
Amen.