“The only person you’re destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
You are the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of your life. I remind myself of this every day to consistently push myself out of my comfort zone and beyond my self-imposed limits.
I don’t want to view myself as a victim of circumstances but rather as a creator of my reality.
This has meant learning to lead me.
And as the saying goes, if you can’t lead yourself, you can’t lead others. Others like our families, our direct reports and team members, and clients.
As a professional coach, I see clients struggle with honoring themselves and acknowledging their talents and gifts. This disconnection leads to feeling like something is missing, to a lack of fulfillment.
If we care about leading a life of meaning, joy, and fulfillment, personal leadership is a must. Without it, we can’t be truly happy or experience real well-being. Dr. Martin Seligman, the author of Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being says “the good life” has five key elements: “It is pleasant, engaged, meaningful, achieving, and connected.”
Here are three ways to be the CEO of your life.
Know Yourself
“Knowing yourself is the key to all wisdom.”
What makes you tick? What gives you joy, makes you lose a sense of time? What brings you down, drains your energy? Knowing your strengths, talents and gifts will help you make better decisions and increase your chances for success. Get to really know yourself, spend some time in silence or solitude. Become your own best friend.
Tame The Inner Critic
“Be careful how you talk to yourself because you are listening.”
Be mindful of your inner dialogue. Are you talking to yourself as if you were someone you loved? If not, pivot. Studies show negative self-talk increases stress, can cause depression and harm your health. Wallowing in negativity also keeps you problem focused versus solution oriented.
Be Confident
“Always act like you’re wearing an invisible crown.”
You are the only you in this world. You have unique gifts and talents. Acknowledge what they are and share them. Give up the idea of being perfect, perfection doesn’t exist. Stand in your own power. Be you. You have what it takes to create the life that you want.
To maximize our chances of succeeding at what’s important to us, we have to lead ourselves. By knowing and honoring ourselves, following our joy and believing in ourselves, we’re happier and add positivity to the world.
Want to put the above tips to practice? Join our workshop, Be the Boss of You: Using Your Mind To Lead on April 10th—details here. I'm co-leading with Lisa Pertoso who helps people become creative leaders and fear breakers.