hey everyone and welcome to top think today we're going to learn about twelve simple tips
to overcome self-doubt now let's begin number one ask the opposite imagine you're getting ready for
your first day at a new job you're wearing your best suit you spent weeks brainstorming notes and
new ideas you even memorized everyone's name in the office but even after all that hard work you
can't stop thinking about how unprepared you feel so how do you make this frustrating self-doubt
disappear one easy technique is called asking the opposite now in this case you're feeling doubtful
because you think you're unprepared so that must mean you know what an unprepared person looks
like right but let's flip that around okay what would someone who's over prepared look like for
starters they would probably look the part they'd look like they belong there just like you do an
over prepared person would also do a bunch of work they didn't need to just like you did they might
even make an effort to seamlessly blend into this new work environment are you seeing a trend here
when you compare yourself to someone who's over prepared you might realize you're doing exactly
the same things so could you be unprepared it seems simple but this technique can really
change your thinking it silences your doubts and it leaves you with a new perspective on yourself
so when you're worried about something just ask the opposite because you might realize you're
doing a lot better than you thought number two listen differently criticism can be a difficult
thing to get used to when someone doesn't like you it's easy to get down on yourself to lose faith
and your ability but what if you're only paying attention to half of the story most people when
they hear feedback listen for one thing and one thing only negativity they're terrified
of failing so they're listening carefully for any and all signs that they might have messed
up every little mistake stands out and it feels like a sword stabbing them through the heart but
what about all the good things sure there may have been a few drops of negativity but those few drops
are swimming in an ocean of compliments in other words you're so focused on what you did wrong
that you're forgetting about what you did right constructive criticism is helpful and important
but too much negativity can fuel yourself doubt it can lead you down a destructive road so don't
forget to encourage yourself and listen when others do the same number three trust yourself
what happens when you don't trust yourself how do you solve problems or make hard decisions the
answer is you don't you rely on the people around you now just imagine you're interviewing for two
jobs and you nailed both interviews each company offers you a great position so what do you do if
you trusted yourself you'd weigh the options and carefully make the best decision that you can but
if you don't trust yourself then it'll feel like there's no right answer you'll keep going back and
forth worrying about whether or not you're going to mess things up instead of making up your mind
you'll fall back on a friend or a family member and ask them what should I do and you'll let them
make that hard decision for you my point here is if you rely on reassurance from other people
you're only going to doubt yourself more the only way to trust yourself is to put faith in
yourself you have to go out on a limb and make those choices on your own they may not be right
all the time and some may lead you down the wrong path but the important thing isn't being perfect
it's being confident in the decisions that you make number four balance interpretations everyone
interprets the world differently but if you doubt yourself those interpretations really take a toll
on your confidence because without realizing it you might see everything as negative no matter
what people say you only hear criticisms and complaints a stranger might be giving you an
amazing compliment but you still find ways to tear yourself down self-doubt skews the way
you interact with the people in your life so pay attention to your own biases and make sure you're
not twisting anyone's words number five remember your success when you look back on your life what
stands out the most probably a lot of negative experiences you remember all the times you got
yelled at or when you embarrassed yourself at work I know those moments loom large in your
memory but they're not as important as you think in fact those negative experiences are probably
always few and far between the problem is you're forgetting about all the positives every time
when you achieve succeeded or made progress if you want to overcome self-doubt then make
sure you never forget your successes number six contest your inner voice everyone's heard that
little voice in their head for some people that voice tells you to take risks and seize the day
but for others it's not always so encouraging your inner voice might tell you to run away or
take the easy road it might convince you that you aren't good enough for something but that
voice in your head isn't always right in fact it's usually wrong that's why it's so important
to contest your inner voice each time it tries to change you just take a step back and ask yourself
is this really how I feel because most of the time it's not most of the time you'll realize
that you're scared of something that you don't need to be scared of so fight back against your
inner voice if it tells you something negative or makes you doubt yourself there's only one
thing to do prove your inner voice wrong number seven practice resilience persistence is a rare
skill the vast majority of people give up after the first try they turn tail and run as soon as
the going gets tough but if you push through your rough patches you'll be stronger for it
not only will you have the courage to face more of those roadblocks in the future you'll have
the self-confidence to earn your success number eight rock the boat so many people play it safe
and hide in the shadows why is that well because they're afraid of disrupting their usual routine
you might be afraid of leaving your comfortable job or maybe you don't think you're capable of
anything more either way you're playing it safe because you're scared of taking that risk but
risks are a critical part of being successful if you want to accomplish your goals you're going
to have to bet on yourself and you need to take a leap into the unknown so don't be afraid to rock
the boats as terrifying as it is those risks may unlock the lifestyle that you've always dreamt
of number nine leaving nothing undone even the most productive people make this mistake
they're efficient all day long but purposely leave one or two things undone often times
it's a creative project for some big personal goal they leave these things unfinished because
they don't have enough confidence to try if you want to overcome yourself doubt then don't leave
anything unfinished whenever you find yourself procrastinating on the same project there's one
thing that you know for sure it's time to get started number 10 raise your own bar CEOs like
Warren Buffett will read hundreds of pages every single day and they'll still find time to run
multi-billion dollar companies that's an amazing accomplishment and you very well might reach
that level someday but not right this minute many people develop self-doubt because they raise the
bar way too high they expect themselves to match the most knowledgeable productive people in the
world but you know it takes a lot of time and a lot of practice to reach that level of motivation
and productivity while it's healthy to learn from the tricks and habits of these successful
people you need to set your own standards you should always focus on raising your own bar and
not trying to match someone else's number eleven confidence in increments self-confidence isn't
something you develop in just a day it's something you build one small step at a time and more often
than not you never really notice it's happening so many people expect this dramatic change in their
personality when they become more productive they want to wake up one morning and realize all their
self-doubt has vanished into thin air but that's not how it works the only way to build confidence
and overcome self-doubt is to achieve one small goal at a time number 12 enough is enough pushing
your limits is just as important as knowing when to stop it's a difficult thing to say enough is
enough but if you're struggling with self-doubt it can change your entire mindset knowing your limits
stops you from overworking yourself and more importantly gives you the courage to stand up for
your achievements you'll learn how to recognize when you tried your best and when it's time to
take a break you'd be surprised how few people can actually do this most people are too worried
about being perfect they just keep going and going until they've lost all confidence in themselves
they start to hate their own work and they're constantly worrying about what could go wrong but
if you can set limits and hold yourself to them then you'll feel more comfortable with your work
more confident in the face of failure and more secure when you finally find success hey thank you
for watching top think and be sure to subscribe because more incredible content is on the way