Life is a Reflection of Your Self-Concept

How you view yourself affects everything that happens in your life, and the reason why is simple: the way you see yourself determines what you pay attention to, and what you pay attention to determines what you think about and how you think about it. In other words, your self-concept -- the beliefs, thoughts, and expectations that make up who you are -- becomes your reality, regardless of whether or not it's based on facts.

What is Self-Concept?

Our self-concept is our belief system about who we are, how others perceive us, and how we see ourselves. These beliefs are created through life experiences and interactions with others, and they affect how we think about ourselves. Our self-concept can be thought of as a lens through which we view ourselves in relation to others. Ask yourself these questions:

Do you have a positive or negative self-image?

Are you confident or fearful? Would you say that your perception of yourself changes frequently?

How do you feel when other people say good things about you?

These questions can tell us a lot about what type of self-concept we’ve developed over time. The better we understand our self-concept, the more effectively we change it—creating more healthy relationships with ourselves and others.

Your Reality is Based on Your Belief System

There’s an old saying in psychology– the mind takes its reality from what it is accustomed to. The simple truth about belief systems as it relates to our sense of reality is that we are only able to perceive what we believe exists.  If we believe something will happen, it will.

Our lives and relationships with others are all built on beliefs (explicitly or implicitly) and those beliefs create our self-concept. We treat ourselves based on what we believe to be true—and how you treat yourself determines your reality.

It’s worth taking some time to reflect on your self-concept today because the moment you do, your life will begin to change. How would your life look if you started treating yourself like someone who deserves to be treated well? You might find that no matter what self-image improvement program or technique you use, nothing changes if you continue believing your current negative thoughts. You need to establish a fresh, new self-concept before anything else can improve in your life.

Fortunately, once you make small changes in your thinking, your entire self-concept follows suit, leading you to live a happier more fulfilling life.

Reflect Upon Your Thoughts

The beliefs you hold about yourself impact every action you take. If you don’t believe in your own self-worth, chances are that others won’t either. Try to identify these thoughts and change them with positive affirmations. Tell yourself that you do matter and deserve happiness just as much as everyone else does! It might take some time, but eventually these positive thoughts will be reflected in your daily life. What we focus on expends.

Once that happens, your reality will change for the better.  Make it happen today by reflecting upon your beliefs and changing what needs to be changed.  What other things make up our belief system? What can we choose to reflect in our lives? Do we have control over those reflections?Make any necessary changes, one step at a time. Soon enough, you’ll start feeling more confident—because you will eventually have greater faith in yourself, and other people will begin treating you differently.

Setbacks are Necessary

Life is full of ups-and-downs. Sometimes we get what we want in life, sometimes we do not. This can leave us feeling like our self-concept or belief system needs to be adjusted. The important thing to remember, however, is that setbacks are necessary! We must “fail” before we succeed; it’s just part of life.

It’s how we learn.

It shapes who we become. All experiences—even negative ones—are opportunities for [immense] growth, so let go of your ego. Accept what comes your way and know that it will help you grow into an even better version of yourself than you could have imagined. Remember, nothing happens to you. Everything happens for you.

Look at the Bigger Picture

When you think about your life and your self-concept, it’s useful to think of it as a reflection in a mirror. That mirror isn’t only reflecting back what you do; it’s also reflecting your personal beliefs, self-worth, thoughts, and more. If you want to change how you see yourself and your life, the first step is to change those fundamental core concepts and values within you.

Begin by examining how well your current belief system aligns with what would truly make for an awesome life for you. Align your beliefs and then apply them to the actions you take day-to-day. This practice will lead to tangible changes that support a better reality!

Eventually, when these practices become second nature, your identity will be reflected as who you wish it were already — not as what you used to be or are now. Change starts with awareness: once we know where our identity currently resides, we can choose how we want it to be instead.

Choose Your Perspective Wisely

Your reaction to life’s events is what makes the difference in how you see things. This concept may sound simple, but it can be challenging to implement. Life can throw curveballs at us, and it can be easy to feel like we have no control over our reactions. The first step in finding balance, however, is realizing that everything happens for a reason—and there are many ways we can choose to view difficult situations and determine what we gain from them. Regardless of your situation, remember that shifting your self-concept can open up endless possibilities for growth.

Conclusion

While examining your self-concept and making changes may be difficult, its one of the best ways to realize your potential. Implementing these things will get you started, and to achieve lasting changes, work with the Status Flow team. Take the first step to living your impossible life by calling (323) 977-8766 or filling out our contact form here

Go from status quo to Status Flow.