Do you have a bucket list? Do you have a list of things you want to achieve or complete? Perhaps you want to write a book or start a blog? According to a Sunday Times article I read a few weeks ago, the top things on most people’s bucket lists were losing weight, writing a book and to stop procrastinating. I was amused by the procrastinating one as after all, if you bite the bullet and grasp the nettle regarding your bucket list, that would eliminate the procrastination.
So many people feel they have a ‘book within them’ and yet it stays on their to-do list. I now notice so many people saying to me that they want to start a blog, or want to add a blog to their website or they want to improve their use of the various social media platforms. Are you one of these people? I am, with regard to the book. I sometimes wonder if I use blogging as an excuse, after all, if I stopped blogging, I’d then have time to write the book – wouldn’t I??
As explained by Owen Fitzpatrick at the recent Charisma Bootcamp I attended, that negative voice inside our head can sound very convincing, very strong and very credible as it tells us we are rubbish. ‘Ha ha‘ it says ‘do you really think you can write a book, keep up a blog, write material that people will read, do you really think so? Of course you can’t …‘ and so on and that is the voice that we tend to listen to as we give in to self doubt and allow ourselves to procrastinate while our ambitions stay on our bucket list.
How do we increase our confidence? Become more charismatic? Build up our self esteem?
If you can ridicule something, you take away its credibility so ridicule that negative voice and you take away its power. How do you do that? You take that negative phrase that is inside your head stopping you achieve your goal and you mimic it in a really silly voice, even make silly faces at it in the mirror. At the Charisma Bootcamp, we had to do this in pairs and while it is actually a lot harder than it sounds, it really does work. You really have to mimic that negative phrase again and again but in a silly tone and the next time that negative phrase comes into your head, it won’t sound convincing – instead it will sound ridiculous as you’ll hear it in your silly voice. It sounds simple, it takes a bit of time to work on it but it really does work.
So go on, if starting a blog is on your bucket list, take that sentence ‘What, you! You can’t start a blog!’ and say it again and again aloud and in a silly squeaky voice and watch the negativity disappear. And watch your determination and self confidence grow as you start to plan your blog and draw up your aims and objectives as you get started.
Remember, Marie and I offer an hour’s consultation for free so if starting a blog or improving your blog is on your bucket list, do give us a call and we’ll give you a hand at achieving that goal and improving your business too.
