Let's say "Of Course, I Can"

Hello, Good Readers!

It's so nice to see you again in my new post. In today's post, I would like to continue my previous post that reviewing a book titled 365 Steps to Self-Confidence by David Lawrence Preston. I am going to share the review from chapter 3 up to 16. Yep! It is going to be a very long post. So, let us check it out!

Chapter 3 - Sow The Seeds of Confidence and Watch Them Grow

In this chapter, David reminded us with a quote "What you sow, you reap". He said if we want to be more confident, we should sow the seeds of confidence in our consciousness through our intentions, thoughts, attitudes and beliefs, imaginings, actions and words, and keep them all nourished, so confident will grow.

According to this book, David -the writer- said that there are three factors that makes us being a person we are right now, including our genetic inheritance, the environment where we raised, and our unique way of trying to make sense of it all.

This chapter, like the two previous chapters, also consists of seven steps or confidence builders which every section will tell us to get to know is there anything that makes us feel unconfident. Then, we should kick all of that off, imagining to be confident, and practice to be confident.

Chapter 4 - Whose Responsibility

In this chapter, David pressed to convince us that the one and only who can build our confidence is us. It is no one's responsibility but us. Only us. It will only happen if we make a firm commitment, set our goals, plan a strategy and take actions. All of the means accepting full responsibility -deciding to be confident and refusing to allow anyone to defeat you from your chosen course. We cannot blame our lack of confidence, failures, setback, or anything else or other people, but us. Because once again I press that all of that is our responsibility only, not others.

This chapter consists of seven confidence builders that pressed on our responsibility of our confidence, our work and our life. In the end of this chapter, David tried to convince us that we have the power to become confident. Yes, I agree with David! Of course we have, haven't we? The point is we can do ANYTHING just if we want to and if we go about it right away.

Chapter 5 - Getting Motivated

In this chapter, David -as the writer of this book- said something that I really agree with. He said that building confidence will take time, patience and efforts. We will need to take a few risks, and sometimes we will feel anxious. Therefore, whenever we feel anxious, we need some motivations to motivate ourselves.

According to this book, there are several things that can motivate us. Those are including our needs or our desires, our perception about 'pleasure' and 'pain', and our hopes and expectations. Furthermore, the book told us that the best way to motivate ourselves is to set ourselves some worthy goals. We need to find a plenty of reasons that we want to accomplish, and keep in our mind about the consequences of failure.

This chapter also included seven confidence builders especially from number 29 - 35. Those confidence builders pressed on what actually being our goals are. And also, this chapter offered us some affirmation to motivate ourselves to be more and more confident each day. Finally, this chapter presented us a story about Lynne who finally could manage to take control over her own life and beginning new phase on her life after managed working on her confidence successfully.

Chapter 6 - Determination

To build confidence, we need a great and strong determination. Without that, our efforts will not be going to make any changes in our life, or the worse, we won't ever want to give any efforts to be more confident. It is because when we feel like it will take so many efforts and will take us to feel much more pain, we will easily to give up and not to try at all. Hence, here, we really need to establish our very great and the strongest determination so that it will be able to make us keep going on this work.

According to this book, before we want to make a decision to build our confidence and follow every confidence builder on this book, we must consider what 'pleasure' we will get and what 'pain' we will take. In other words, we need to consider first how many advantages and disadvantages we will get during doing this book.

This chapter, just same as the previous chapters, included seven confidence builders. Those confidence builders on this chapter pressed on what advantage of following this course that we will get, and what disadvantage or 'pain' that we are willing to do in order to follow each confidence builder of this book so that we cab be the more confident version of us. Finally, the book gave us an advise. This point of its advise is if we have a fear to do something, all we need to do  is just DO IT. It is because we can be called to be confident just if we could do the greatest fear we have.

Chapter 7 - Think Like A Confident Person

This chapter invited us to be aware of a theory which stated that our mindset or our the way of thinking about something, for example ourselves, is the biggest key to achieve our future goals. Then, this is the point. If we want to be more confident, we have to change our way thinking of ourselves, about everything, then we have to think like a confident person so that we can really be a confident person.

This chapter included seven confidence builders in the way of helping us to practice thinking like a confident person. Finally, this chapter was closed by a quote from its writer, David, which for me the quote feel so good.

"As long as you keep thinking as you've been thinking, you'll keep feeling as you've been feeling, doing as you've been doing, and getting what you've been getting"

And then, I am willing to add some additional words that I think will fit that quote. I will say, "So, if you want to get everything you have not been getting, you should  think and do everything you have never been doing".

Chapter 8 - The Four Step Method

This chapter, just same as the title, is going to present us The Four Step Method. It is quiet simply the most effective technique that the writer knew for building self-confidence. The four steps are first, be mindful. Second, stop disempowering thoughts. Then, replace them with empowering thoughts. And finally, keep going until it becomes automatic. Furthermore, the seven confidence builders that this book served on this chapter will teach you how to practice The Four Step Method clearly.

Chapter 9 - Silencing the Inner Critic

This chapter will offer us an explanation about how to silence the inner critic, just the way of the title. According to this book, Inner Critic is that pernicious little voice inside our heads that constantly carps, complains and condemns. For example, when we want to do something and then suddenly the thought like this comes to our mind "Yes.. but.. supposing. You are rubbish at that,  you know you are. It will all go wrong, it always does!". And then you will suddenly feel down. Well, honestly I often got trapped in this situation. That sucks, I swear. So, this is the reason why I chose to try to read and doing the steps on this book. I hope it will work on me and on every person who read this book as well, and you!

Specifically, this chapter will serve seven confidence builders that will help us to stop disempowering thoughts which is the second step of The Four Step Method. Finally, this chapter would tell us an example of Eileen Mulligan who has managed to stop her disempowering thoughts, and replacing them with empowering thoughts so that she could be an amazing person right now.

Chapter 10 - Affirmations

From some previous chapters, we found that this book has given us some affirmations -only if you read the completer chapters of the book- that we can use to motivate, and to help us determining ourselves to be more confident each day. However, in this chapter, the affirmation would be explained in details. In advance, according to this book, the definition of affirmations are a form of self-suggestions. In addition, affirmations could help us to emphasis our good points, change weaknesses into strengths, change attitudes, and focus on what we want for ourselves.

This chapter included seven confidence builders that focused on helping us to do some actions that will make us to have a good affirmations. So that, we will have a strong determination and self-esteem. Finally, from this chapter David has told us that suggestion can be the most strongest thing for us, and it can change our beliefs as well.

Chapter 11 - Who Do You Imagine Yourself To Be?

In this chapter, David tells us that imagination also have a part on the process of building our confidence. Furthermore, he said that the is a special part in our imagination called subconscious mind. It will always listening, watching, soaking up our experience like a sponge. It then acts as a kind of database to which you constantly refer for guidance and support. Once our subconscious has accepted the idea that we are confident, it will makes sure our thinking, feelings and confidence becomes reality.

This chapter consists of 7 confidence builders that will help us using our imagination to build our confidence. I have read this chapter including the seven steps, and I'm pretty sure every steps or confidence builder will help us becoming more and more confident through the use of our imagination. To be conclude, we can use our imagination to help us building our confidence, if we imagine we are as a confident people and act like one, confident is going to be natural part of us.

Chapter 12 - Getting The Most From Creative Imagery

This chapter is going to help us comprehend more about what we have done in previous chapter. Clearly, this section or chapter will help us get the most out of the techniques for creative imagery. Have you heard that before? Well, creative imagery is the process of consciously creating a mental image or impression as a means of influencing the all-important subconscious mind. Briefly, this chapter will give us the techniques to objectify our imagination into actions.

As I told you before, this chapter will guide you to learn more about imagination, especially the creative imagery. So, this chapter equally will offer us seven confidence builders that will help us learning how to use our creative imagery properly. Finally, this chapter gives an example of a person named Vicky who finally had managed to  use his creative imagery successfully.

Chapter 13 - The "As If" Principle

Well, do you remember the five elements of building the confidence? Yes? No? Here, we are presented how to use our imagination which is the fourth elements of the five elements, this chapter will present us the fifth principle of the five important elements of building the confidence, which is act "as if".

Relating to the explanation above, in this chapter, David will present us seven confidence builders again. This time all of them are going to help us improving our skill to act "as if" we are confident, so that late or soon we will be confident.

Briefly, the whole explanation above simply that when we act as if we are confident, no matter how uncomfortable we feel, we became confident. Your feeling soon will adapt to the new behavior and if you endure, confidence blooms.

Chapter 14 - Eat An Elephant

What is the meaning of 'eat an elephant?'. Well, how do we eat an elephant? Of course, one bite a time. It is just same as 'how to build our confidence?' Yep! One step a time. To be clear, in this chapter, David tell us that if we want to be more confident, we have to practice it every time. For example, are you afraid to answer a question from your teacher? Go, answer it! We do not have to be afraid of being wrong, because wrong or failed just a step towards the right thing or success. Hence, after you have failed at first trial, go try it again and again in the next days. Try it regularly until you feel comfortable with it.

As usual, there will be seven confidence builders in this chapter. Every confidence builder will help us practice to be more confident, step by step, each day. Finally, we have known all of the five important elements to build confidence. In the next chapter, we will be present to go deeper with our self-awareness, especially about our past.

Chapter 15 - Self-Awareness 1 : Your Past

We have known that our past can be one of the reason why we have lack of confidence at this time. In this chapter,  David told us there are many aspects of our past that could be the reasons why we are confident, or why we are lack of confident. It can be our experience of being failed, bullied, or it can be from the one who raised us and the environment in which we grew up.

There will be also, as usually, seven confidence builders. In this chapter, those confidence builders will help us to find out what events in our past that mostly affect our confidence. And that's all from this chapter. Find out more on the book. You can download it here: https://www.pdfdrive.com/365-steps-to-self-confidence-e32426023.html

Chapter 16 - Self- Awareness 2 : What are you like?

This chapter clearly will still present us about self-awareness. Different from the previous chapter, this chapter is going to take us to learn more about our confidence through our self-esteem and self-worth. Therefore, the seven confidence builders that this chapter presented to us will help us finding out more about ourselves. How we really feel about ourselves, our self-esteem, and our self-worth.

Well, I have read all the seven confidence builders of this chapter. I just found some questions that made me like, "Omg, yes. Yes, absolutely. This is what I really feel all this time". This chapter really helped me to find out more about myself, my own self-esteem and self-worth. I hope it can be helpful too for you.

That's all guys. I hope it can be useful for you. Thank you so much for visiting my blog. I'm gonna continue the next chapters on my post later on. My advise for you today is 'Please, just keep going'. See you soon. Much Love