There is no such thing as being the perfect self (sorry to disappoint) but there is the ability to live as your Best-Self. There is so much for us to learn in life in what we do, how we interact with others, and how we deal with emotions. We have the ability to constantly grow and become a better person, working to act as our Best-Self.
I am an analyzer. It is part of who I am. I look at situations, evaluate them, and then sometimes recommend or make changes. It has helped me throughout my career whether it is working to make companies more effective or leading a yoga class. But the place where I spend the most time analyzing is inward.
Yes, I spend a lot of time reflecting on what I do, how I act, how I feel. I have previously spoken about we can be our own worst critic. Although that is true, that is not what I am referencing here. I try to fairly assess myself. The question I often ask myself is “What would my Best-Self do?” Sometimes the answer to the question is easy. More often than not it is more puzzling when I have to face a difficult decision or challenge.
I have learned to find comfort in asking, “What would my Best-Self do?” I can step outside of myself and think what would that look like, not offering myself the chance to think about the challenges, the fears or the work it might take. When I identify what that Best-Self solution would look like, I then make the plan to take the steps to get there.
Honestly sometimes it is easier than others. Often it requires me facing a fear which let’s face it, can be scary. While it is much easier to stay in my comfort zone, it often won’t take me to my finest hour, nor will it help me grow as a person.
When facing that fear I think back to things in my past that I once faced with fear that today seem like no-brainers. When I face them today there is no hesitation to take them forward. Instead they have become part of me being my Best-Self.
For example, I used to rarely share my writing with others. I was worried I wasn’t a good writer, people wouldn’t like it, or more likely they would laugh at me. I was then asked to submit an article about a topic I spoke about often. My first emotion was resistance as all my fears came to the surface. I then stopped, and asked what my Best-Self would do. She would write and submit the article. Yes, I might get constructive feedback, it might get rejected and some may not care for what I write, but others might and I wouldn’t know until I tried. So I did…I put on my big-girl pants, as my husband likes to say, and wrote and submitted the article. Trust me it wasn’t easy. I was happily surprised when the article was not only printed, but had very few edits from my original submission. My Best-Self took a step forward.
From there I continued to submit articles and each time gained more confidence. Now, when asked to write an article it no longer shows up as a knot in my stomach or an insecurity that knocks on my door constantly. I pushed through and I succeeded.
By tapping into experiences I have where stepping forward to my Best-Self wasn’t easy, but I did it anyway and was better for it, I gain the confidence to do it again. Now I will admit not every step forward is successful. Would you expect it would?
Thomas Edison, one of most successful inventors of all time once said, “I have not failed 10,000 times – I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.” Luckily I don’t think I have to fail 10,000 times to figure out what I need to do to become my Best-Self, yet it is an ongoing project and always will be as long as I make it so.
So I keep asking myself the question, “What would my Best-Self do?” and hope that I am living up to the answers. What would you do right now to act as your Best-Self? Share with me below.