Daryl Wood's Blog

You can’t fake self-esteem. You can try … and you might fool some of the people some of the time BUT not everyone and not always.

We wear our self-esteem all over our faces, our bodies and in our voices. We shout, we cry, we whine, we whisper, we criticize, we complain, we deny, we lie. Our self-esteem enters the room just moments before we physically show up and lands before we open our mouth. The biggest smile or meanest glare can’t hide the self-loathing that we fight to conceal.

So what’s a girl/guy to do when your insides are churning with self-doubt and you desperately want to feel confident or competent or at least grounded? I’ve learned a trick that works every time. I stop whatever I’m doing and do something that I KNOW will make me feel really good about myself. There was a time when I thought that meant eating a piece of chocolate. I quickly learned that the momentary high of sugar/caffeine only sent me into a tailspin of self recrimination.

So now … I literally stop myself and do something that lightens my heart. Sometimes I take a walk. Sometimes I sit quietly outside in the fresh air. Sometimes I clean out a cupboard; vacuum the dust in the hallway, clear off my desk or eat an apple. It doesn’t have to be big and full of drama. It just has to be something that you know, on a deep soul level, will make you say “atta girl/boy”. You know what it is … so go esteem yourself!

Trust me – people will notice!