The currency of confidence affords you access to your dreams - Self-Esteem exercises to boost performance

My 5 year old son Kaelan is asleep on the eve before he is to begin kindergarten.

Like New Year's resolutions, I find that back to school is a natural reflection point for most all of us as we transition from summer to autumn, from pool time to school time.

We look ahead with both optimism and anxiety about how we show up; challenging ourselves yet again to bring our very best selves to school, or work, or perhaps how we come home to loved ones. I admittedly could improve on that last one.

But not everyone is prepared or feels prepared to compete or rather, collaborate with their peers.

How can we strengthen our internal mindsets to impact our external skill sets?

Reading, Writing, and Self-Esteem

Simple exercises could close the achievement gap

How can we boost our self-esteem to elevate our performance?

We all know from experience that an unkind word from someone can derail our self-confidence. But can some choice positive words from ourselves put us in a different mindset to push through and breakthrough? Research says yes.

An article from the Utne Reader (the Oak Park, IL library was clearing out old magazines and I picked up some dated Utne editions, a magazine I admittedly had not read since grad school days) talks about values-affirmation exercises to strengthen you psychologically and toughen your resiliency; to bend but not be broken. It's not a click-bait, empty-calorie wordy article but a meal of meaning served up for you to digest slowly and chew over with people who matter to you.

My takeaway from the article is this: Our self-perception shapes our self-worth. When we sell ourselves short then we miss out on the fortune of living on our terms, not stereotypes. The currency of confidence affords you access to your dreams.

Perhaps those who feel they need to chart a new course with a higher trajectory can find some wisdom in this article. https://www.utne.com/mind-and-body/self-affirmation-excercises-close-education-achievement-gap

I hope my son enjoys school as I did, most days. I hope he learns and laughs while making friends. I hope he grows his confidence so that he never has to lower his eyes or lower his expectations of himself or life. I hope all that and will plan to be home on time more often.