Self Image

One of the main things about having high self esteem and confidence is having a good "self image".

What does that mean?

Your self image is literally how you see yourself. If you have a bad view of yourself, you're more likely to think that others see you the same way.

As I've said before in other posts, if you think of yourself as ugly, when someone looks at you, you might think they think you're ugly too, whereas they may be thinking the exact opposite.

There are many things you can do to improve your self image. But first, you need to work out what is it that makes you feel bad about yourself.

Is it your physical appearance that you don't like? Do you feel you are too fat, too thin, not good looking, hairy? Whatever it is that bothers you, see what you can do to change it. If it's an exercise related issue, do more exercise (Yoga, Pilates, running, swimming, tennis). Whatever it is, do something that makes you feel good. The obvious health benefits also speak for themselves. Getting regular exercise releases endorphins into the body that help it cope with the rigours of the exercise itself, but these endorphins make you feel great. Almost to the point that exercising becomes addictive and you just want to do more.

And guess what happens to your self image? It improves. If it's a weight related issue, exercise will help shed pounds (not all exercise is extreme, things like Yoga and Pilates are very low impact but can have huge benefits), if you're too thin, exercising (and maybe working with a personal trainer) will mean that your body requires more nutrients, so you may find yourself eating more healthily. If it's a skin issue, sometimes eating more healthily, in conjunction with exercise releases toxins that may have been causing the issue.

I understand that some issues are much more complex than this, but it's also true that sometimes, simply taking action can make a huge difference to your lifestyle.

Why not give it a try?

Ziggy Whybrow

Boiler Repair Dorking

It seems I don't have much luck with my plumbing!

Every morning my shower is cold until I run the hot tap in the basin. Once that is warm, the shower starts warming up!

And the central heating is a bit temperamental too.

I need a boiler engineer in Dorking, and ran across this video...

Think I'll be giving these guys a call.

Hopefully it won't come to a completely new boiler installation!

Cheers

Ziggy Whybrow

Oxted Plumber Web Site

I know this isn't my normal kind of post on this blog, but a mate of mine is a plumber in Oxted, and he's just had a new web site built.

He's a great guy. I've actually had to use him myself recently.

I've got a small basin in my bathroom, with one of those push up push down type of plugs (don't know the official term!). Anyway, the plug came away from the basin a month or so ago, so I got my plumber mate to come round and take a look. I'd already tried to put it back together myself, but wasn't successful.

He came over, took one look, and said it all needed replacing. Oh great! Even at his "mates rates", it's still going to cost me around £100+ to get sorted. Not what I needed right now.

I actually went to a local hardware store and bought a small plastic one for 50p, so that'll have to do for now!

I'll get my plumber mate back when I've got more money.

Ziggy Whybrow

Achieve Your Impossible Dream

Over and over again, we dream big dreams and have enormous aspirations. Unfortunately, our dreams remain just that - dreams.

Life could be a great deal better, if only we learned to aspire higher. The most widespread difficulty in setting goals is the word impossible. For the most part people get hung up thinking I can't do this. It is too hard. It is unattainable. No one can do this. If everyone thought that, there would be no inventions, no innovations, and no breakthroughs in human achievement.

Keep in mind that scientists were puzzled when they took a look at the unassuming bumblebee. In theory, they said, it was not possible for the bumblebee to fly. Fortunately for the bumblebee nobody has told it so. As a result fly it does.

If you limit yourself with self-doubt, and self-limiting assumptions, you will in no way be able to break past what you consider not possible. If you reach excessively far out into the sky without working towards your goal, you will find yourself clinging to the impossible dream.

As you break up your dream into achievable steps, you will find out that the goals you thought were not possible become easier to bring about. And the not possible begins to seem possible after all.

Thomas Edison once said that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. Nothing could be truer. For one to achieve his or her dreams, there has to have been hard effort and discipline. But take note that that one percent has to be a think-big dream, and not some easily accomplished one.

Think big and work hard to accomplish those dreams. As you step up the ladder of progress, you will just about find out that the not possible has just become a little bit more possible.

Ziggy Whybrow

How to Motivate Yourself

Motivation is not something that is easy to come by, especially when you have grown up in a neighborhood or household that is generally laid back and easy to please. But as you grow older, you may come to realise that motivation is key to many human activities. For one, you cannot simply sit back, relax, and watch your deadlines go by in school, or you may never get your ticket to go to college.

You cannot simply slack off in college and drink yourself to death (or a series of F’s), or you may never get a job. And when you are finally sitting at your desk or driving your car or working or contributing to the economy, you cannot simply leave all your duties and lie down at home. You will need to do as you did in school: meet deadlines, complete requirements, finish reports, and in general, live your life without losing your energy.

So, how can you motivate yourself?

For a lot of people who have been burned out in school, college, or the workplace, this can be a difficult thing to achieve. However, there are a few tips that you can consider when you feel that you cannot push yourself any further.

- Know what exactly it is you want. What are you motivating yourself to do? Do you merely want to finish a job, or do you want to earn a lot of money? Set tangible, or at least manageable goals for yourself. If you know exactly what you want, you can get it, and you can motivate yourself to get it.

- Give your work a purpose. The problem with a lot of people is that they work hard but they don’t know what their work is for. Do they want money? Are they simply working toward money? Do you want money, or does your money have a purpose? Give yourself a tangible purpose so that you can know what you are working for. Striving for money is an empty goal; striving for money so that you can get a good house and a nice car might be more tangible; striving for more money so that you can help your siblings go to college, your parents to enjoy their retirement, and your family to have a better house and car might be even better.

- Take a break. Sometimes, being burned out means that you need to stay away from things for a moment, have some time alone to yourself, and get an outsider’s view of your situation. When you start getting fatigued more often, your body might be telling you to slow down; and slowing down can mean re-energising yourself by taking a vacation, or even just taking a walk. You may want to set aside some alone time each day for you to recharge, so that you are not constantly being barraged with work.

- Don’t be afraid to say no when you are offered yet another duty. Sometimes, you can get so much work that you are saturated with stress, and you reach the point where you simply want to give up and not start working. Keep your work to a manageable level. You need to stay sane to keep on working in the long run.

- Reward yourself for a job well done! Plan out a trip for yourself, or promise to take yourself to the movies if you complete your work. Little rewards, such as snacks and a cup of hot chocolate, can work too.

Ziggy Whybrow

Stop Procrastinating

I finally crossed something off from my 'to-do' list that's been bugging me for ages. Each time the alert came up on my screen to get it done, I just postponed it til 'tomorrow'. It's been going on for so long now, I stopped even registering what the message said. It became almost normal for me to get the alert and put it off again.

Boy, it feels good to actually dismiss it now, knowing that the task is done and over with.

Sometimes, life is like that, though. There are things that we know we just have to do, but if we can just put it off another 24 hours, it will be better. And, sometimes, that procrastination is valid, because something more important has to be done first. And, more often than not, it's just because we don't want to do it for some reason.

The next time you put off a task, think about it. Are you really going to do it tomorrow? Is there really a justified reason why you can't do it today? Or even now? You see, what happens is that you still won't want to do it tomorrow, and you'll find an excuse then too, not to do it. So, you may as well get it done now and not worry about it any more. Then, you'll feel good too, knowing it's crossed off the list.


I dare you... Go and check your to-do list now, and do something on it that you've been putting off for a while. Then tell me how you feel about it.

Ziggy Whybrow

Self Confidence Pays Off

I was in my local hospital yesterday for a heart consultation. As I was waiting for my appointment, I watched all the staff walking by, going about their duties.

While I was watching I noticed that the better looking staff seemed (to me anyway) to have the better jobs. It occurred to me that this could be for a number of reasons:

1) I am attracted to people in power? - Maybe, but I don't think so. It could be that their position within the hospital made them appear more attractive. Possibly, but I doubt it.

2) Better looking people are more employable? Well, I dread to think of the backlash I would receive if I advocated that school of thought, but I expect there are people in this world who do think that.

3) These people actually think of themselves as better looking, and this raises their own self confidence and self esteem? Bingo! This is where the heart of it is, in my opinion. You see, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. In actual fact, and I say this with sincerity, I truly believe there is no such thing as an ugly person. Beauty is not just about what we look like, it's about who we are. If you believe in yourself enough, then the sky is the limit. And, unfortunately, good looking people seem to get all the encouragement and self reinforcement they want. In fact, they probably don't even realise it.

If someone thinks of themselves as 'ugly', their own self esteem is going to be way down. And this will affect their entire outlook on life. It will make them think they are no good at anything.

I believe this starts from an early age. Imagine yourself as a three year old. You watch TV and see superheros flying through the air, holding up buildings and stopping express trains with their bare hands. You can do that! Whoosh!! You're off.

But, by the time you're leaving school to look for your first job, you've heard "You can't do that", "Don't do this", "You'll never make it" so many times, you'll believe it. You've just had the life sucked out of you.

Let's face it, if you believe you can do something, you'll find a way to make it happen. A little thing like a failure just makes you more determined. In fact, the only true way to fail is to not try at all, or to give up. Believe in yourself and you can do anything.

Ziggy Whybrow