Approve of Yourself

The old adage proclaimed by Earl Nightingale and other self-development gurus is still true.  It goes like this.  “You Become What You Think About.” 

This message has been stated dozens of different ways by others, yet the basic message remains. 

When you “appreciate” yourself, what exactly are you doing? 

In Kevin Hall’s book Aspire, he states, “You should never treat another person in a manner that would make them feel small.  And that means you.”

So, that begs the question.  How do you treat yourself?  The thoughts we hold forth do matter.  Denis Waitley states that “the subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between a real and an imagined experience.” 

The little voice inside of us is constantly “on.”  It talks to us about us every waking moment of the day.  This is the source for the dominant messages we receive about ourselves

If you feed your little voice some wholesome and sound mental images of yourself, you are doing a good thing. 

I will never forget the day I discovered the simple phrase “I Approve of Myself.”  I was reading a back issue of Success Magazine and the author was quoting Louise Hay.  She related the story of the day this particular phrase became her mantra.  I put the magazine down and felt the impact of those four words in a profound way. 

I grew up in a family of ten kids with a stern, conservative father who left no room for “foolishness” as he called it.  He made us toe the line in discipline and rarely if ever gave any words of esteem or encouragement.

All I knew as I grew up was that even when I thought I was doing my best, sometimes I would get a stern reprimand with no room for grace and no praise for the effort I was making.  I took on the mantle of being a non-starter and one who always fell short of the mark, and unfortunately I lived under that shadow for many years. 

And then came hope in the form of four powerful words.  “I APPROVE OF MYSELF.”  I immediately made a laminated card that I carried in my pocket and at odd moments during my day I would pull that card out and read over those healing words. 

I began seeing changes in my life.  My work performance began improving.  I began closing more sales.  My writing took a turn for the good.  I traced many good and wonderful changes to these four words. 

I referred to Kevin Hall’s book earlier.  Later in his book Kevin says this.  “The way I treat myself reflects the way I treat others.”  It’s a trickledown effect, isn’t it? 

How we see ourselves does color our world. 

It is self-image, self-confidence, and self-esteem all rolled into one concept. 

As Brian Tracy is fond of saying, “I like myself.  I really do like myself.”

P Michael Biggs

Offering Words of Hope

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