Dive into the latest episode of our podcast, “How Is Your Self-Image?” where we dive into the factors that influence how we perceive ourselves. From societal pressures to personal experiences,
Join us as we examine the impact of perfectionism, comparisons to others, and negative feedback on our self-image. We invite you to reflect on your own self-perception and share your thoughts with us. How do you see yourself?
Perfectionism:
So, when we’re constantly aiming for perfection and setting those super high standards, it’s like setting ourselves up for a fall. You know, we end up beating ourselves up when we can’t meet those unrealistic expectations.
Comparisons to Others:
Ah, you know how it is, especially nowadays with social media everywhere. We’re always looking at other people’s lives and feeling like we’re just not measuring up. It’s a recipe for feeling inadequate and blaming ourselves.
Past Mistakes:
We all mess up sometimes, right? But dwelling on those mistakes or what we see as failures just keeps us stuck. It’s like we’re trapped in this cycle of self-criticism that stops us from moving forward.
Negative Feedback:
It’s tough when we hear criticism or negative stuff from others. Sometimes, even if it’s meant to be helpful, we take it to heart and start blaming ourselves even more. It’s like we amplify that self-blame.
Imposter Syndrome:
Ever feel like you’re not really as good as people think you are? Yeah, that’s imposter syndrome for you. Even when we achieve something, we doubt ourselves and end up blaming ourselves for not being good enough.
Unrealistic Expectations:
We’ve all done it – set these crazy high expectations for ourselves. But when reality doesn’t match up, it’s like a punch in the gut. We end up disappointed and then, you guessed it, blaming ourselves for not reaching those impossible goals.
Body Image Issues:
Man, society’s beauty standards can really mess with our heads, can’t they? Constantly bombarded with images of perfection, it’s no wonder we start blaming ourselves for not looking a certain way. It’s like we’re never good enough.
Lack of Boundaries:
It’s hard to say no sometimes, right? We end up taking on too much, burning ourselves out, and then blaming ourselves for not being able to handle it all. We gotta learn to set those boundaries and give ourselves a break.
Fear of Rejection:
Who likes feeling left out or not fitting in? Nobody, that’s who. But when we start blaming ourselves for not being accepted, it’s like adding insult to injury. We gotta cut ourselves some slack and realize we’re not always gonna click with everyone.
Negative Childhood Experiences:
Our past can really mess with our heads, huh? Especially if we had a rough time growing up. Those early experiences stick with us, shaping how we see ourselves and yeah, sometimes leading to self-blame down the line. It’s tough, but we gotta work through it.
These verses can serve as sources of inspiration and encouragement for those seeking positive affirmations from the bible
- Philippians 4:13 (NIV):
- “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
- Psalm 139:14 (NIV):
- “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
- Isaiah 41:10 (NIV):
- “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
- Romans 8:37 (NIV):
- “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”
- Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV):
- “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
- Psalm 34:17-18 (NIV):
- “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
- Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV):
- “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
- Matthew 11:28 (NIV):
- “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Positive affirmations can be impactful without being overly cliché. Here are five affirmations that can say to uplift yourself:
- I am capable and resilient. I can handle whatever comes my way with grace and strength.
- My worth is not determined by my productivity. I am valuable just as I am, and I deserve to prioritize self-care.
- I trust in my abilities and believe in my potential. Each day, I am becoming the best version of myself.
- I embrace progress, not perfection. I celebrate my efforts, and I am proud of the journey I’m on.
- I am deserving of happiness, love, and success. I attract positive opportunities, and I am open to the abundance of life.
Ever found yourself under the weather with a calendar full of appointments, responsibilities looming, and a job that won’t wait? We’ve all been there.
In today’s episode, I’ll be sharing practical tips and insights to help you power through and manage your commitments, even on days when your energy is running low. Let’s dive into strategies that can make a difference in pushing through the hurdles when duty calls.
- Discuss the importance of recognizing and accepting when you’re not feeling well.
- Highlight that it’s okay to acknowledge your limitations.
- Emphasize the significance of focusing on essential responsibilities.
- Discuss breaking tasks into smaller, manageable steps to make them less overwhelming.
- Encourage reaching out to colleagues, friends, or family for assistance when needed.
Key points: acknowledge feelings, prioritize tasks, break it down, practice self-care, and seek support.
How To Become The Person You Want To BE?
- Decide Who You Want to Be
- Discuss the significance of making conscious decisions about the person you want to become.
- Explore the idea of being tossed to and fro when lacking a clear sense of identity.
- Explore the question: How do you decide who you want to be?
- Encourage to reflect on their values, passions, and long-term goals.
- Discuss the importance of aligning personal goals with core values for lasting fulfillment.
- Offer practical tips on self-discovery, such as journaling, meditation, or seeking guidance from mentors.
- Emphasize the power of dreaming big and setting ambitious goals.
- Discuss the idea that even if you fail, aiming high can lead to significant personal growth and success.
- List common obstacles that may be holding individuals back from becoming the person they desire.
- Identify their own barriers and challenges.
- Provide strategies for overcoming obstacles, such as breaking goals into smaller steps or seeking support from friends and family.
- Discuss the importance of accountability in personal development.
- Encourage to share their goals with someone they trust for support and feedback.
- Emphasize the value of tracking progress and celebrating small victories along the way.
Ephesians 4:14
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
https://drmsh.com/image-god-imaging-god/
How would you decide what you are wasting time or energy on ?
- Productivity vs. Reflection: Evaluate whether your thoughts are contributing to productivity or personal growth. Reflecting on experiences or planning can be valuable, while excessive worry or overthinking may be less productive.
- Goal Alignment: Assess whether your thoughts align with your short-term and long-term goals. If your thoughts are not contributing to your objectives, it might be worth reconsidering their focus.
- Positive vs. Negative Impact: Consider whether your thoughts have a positive or negative impact on your mental well-being. Positive and constructive thoughts are generally more beneficial than negative or self-critical ones.
- Mindfulness: Practice mindfulness to be aware of your thoughts without judgment. This can help you identify unproductive thought patterns and redirect your focus.
- Time Management: Evaluate how much time you spend on certain thoughts. If you find yourself spending excessive time on unproductive thoughts, it may be a sign to shift your focus.
- Value Assessment: Assess the value of your thoughts in terms of personal development, learning, or creativity. Valuable thoughts contribute positively to your overall well-being.
5 Takeaways:
- Awareness is Key: Recognize when your thoughts or actions are counterproductive.
- Time Management Matters: Assess how you spend your time to identify areas for improvement.
- Personal Stories Connect: Listener stories make the topic relatable and offer diverse perspectives.
- Practical Strategies: Provide actionable techniques for redirecting focus and energy positively.
- Continuous Improvement: Emphasize that developing mindful focus is an ongoing process; small changes lead to significant results.
Get ready to elevate your life with the latest from LevelYourselfUp! 🚀 In this podcast, we bring you 3 empowering books that I recommend in 2023, top 3 podcasts for inspiration, and exciting plans for future episodes. Let’s embark on a journey of self-improvement together!
Top 3 Books:
- “Be Useful” by Arnold Schwarzenegger
- Description: Practical advice and inspirational stories for a more meaningful and fulfilling life.
- Key Points:
- Have a vision: Clarify your values, strengths, passions, and the impact you want to make.
- Be grateful: Practice gratitude to stay positive and motivated.
- Work hard: No substitute for hard work; set realistic goals and find a mentor.
- Be persistent: Don’t give up on your dreams; learn from mistakes and celebrate successes.
- Be kind: Treat others with respect, compassion, and humility.
- Give back: Help others and find fulfillment in making a difference.
- Link: Be Useful
- “You Can’t Screw This Up” by Adam Bornstein
- Description: A self-help book on sustainable weight loss, demystifying the diet industry.
- Key Points:
- Emphasizes imperfection and practicality in dieting.
- Backed by research, with a focus on making life better.
- Includes a wealth of recipes, tips, and exercise routines.
- Link: You Can’t Screw This Up
- “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries
- Description: Guides entrepreneurs in creating successful businesses through continuous improvement.
- Key Takeaways:
- Learnable process for entrepreneurship.
- Goal: Quickly identify what customers want and will pay for.
- Customers reveal truths through actions.
- Test and validate hypotheses, use MVPs for rapid feedback.
- Link: The Lean Startup
Top 3 Podcasts for 2023:
- Mini Miracles for Minor Moments by Linda Gullo
- In the Studio With Michael Card
- Arnold’s Pump Club by Arnold Schwarzenegger
Show Notes for LevelYourselfUp Podcast:
- Plans for future episodes: New episodes every 2 weeks.
- LevelYourselfUp Podcast
How to spot spam emails or letters from the mail
Look for generic greetings such as “Dear valued customer” or “Dear friend” instead of using your name.
Check for spelling and grammar errors, as these are often present in spam emails.
Be wary of emails or letters that ask for personal information such as passwords or social security numbers.
Be suspicious of emails or letters that contain urgent language, such as “act now” or “limited time offer.”
Watch out for emails or letters that come from an unfamiliar sender, Be cautious of emails or letters that contain attachments or links, these could be malicious and should be scanned with antivirus software before opening.
Check for a physical address, phone number, and return email address if it’s a letter. Spam letters often lack this information.
Be aware of phishing emails, which are designed to trick you into providing personal information or login credentials.
Trust your instincts and delete any email or letter that seems suspicious.
Top spam tools used to trick people
Phishing scams: These involve sending emails or messages that appear to be from a legitimate source, such as a bank or a popular website, used to trick people into providing personal information or login credentials.
Malware: This can be delivered through malicious attachments or links in emails or messages, which, when clicked, can infect a computer with malware such as viruses, ransomware, or keyloggers.
Vishing: This is a form of phishing that uses phone calls to trick people into providing personal information or transferring money.
Smishing: This is a form of phishing that uses text messages to trick people into providing personal information or downloading malware.
Business email compromise (BEC): This type of scam targets businesses by tricking employees into transferring money or providing sensitive information.
Social engineering: This is a broad term that refers to any tactic used to trick people into divulging personal information or performing actions that they wouldn’t normally do.
Spear-phishing: this is a type of phishing that is targeted to specific individuals or organizations, using information that the attackers have gathered about their target.
These are just some examples of the most common spam tools used to trick people, but new and more sophisticated methods are continually being developed by cyber criminals. It’s important to stay vigilant and not to share personal information with any suspicious emails, letters, or calls.
Steps for choosing your best word of the year:
First, seek the Lord and ask him for direction
List the things you want to focus on this year.
Determine the common theme[s] of your list.
List some words that would work.
Decide which of the words on your list feels like it will be the MOST motivational.
OR try
What could I use more of in my life?
What could I use less of in my life?
What characteristics would I like to have?
By the end of the day, I feel (fill in the blank).
How do I want to feel?
Let God bring it to the surface.
Bible Verse – Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. —Philippians 4:6
This podcast is all about what has gone on since the last podcast was released on June 1 of 2022.
I discuss format changes it’s going to happen on this podcast along with the new schedule being released every two weeks instead of every week.
I would like you to think about a few things before the next podcast what brings you the most joy in your life?
What’s one or two things that you can do that would bring you the most happiness question
And also what are one or two things you would like to change for the year?
I also discussed coming up with one word that would describe the year. I’ve kind of landed on the word, it is transition for me.
Now, you don’t have to do this for the whole year matter of fact just do it for 3 months at a time.
And I guess my overall message for this podcast is that we all struggle and have things that we have to fight through let’s not focus on the pain or frustration but focus on what we can do to get through the struggle to get through the pain. What is God trying to teach us through this?
Always look at each situation as a way to grow and improve as a person
Psalm 37:23-24 “The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand
- Create a de-cluttering checklist
- Don’t overwhelm yourself; start small
- Does it bring you joy?
- Reconsider your routine.
- Remove toxic people from your life
- Tidy up your workspace and vehicle
Use the four-box method.
The four-box method is an effective way to help your clutter. Just find four boxes and label them with the following categories:
- Trash: These are items that you no longer need or want. But, they’re also not worthy of donating or selling.
- Give away/sell: For the things that may have value to others, donate or sell them.
- Store: Seasonal clothing hanging in your closet when it’s 30 degrees outside.
- Keep and put away: For the things that you use regularly
Don’t buy anything unless it serves a purpose
Practice mindfulness bring peace to your live
Unplug and unwind
Make de-cluttering a priority.
Practice regular purging.
Reduce visual clutter
closets and cabinets
Organize the garage like another room in the home.
Keep lists in a notebook
Create a place for essentials
When struggling to make de-cluttering decisions, the 20/20 rule says you should consider letting go of an item if: You can replace it for less than $20. And you can replace it in less than 20 minutes
You may think any type of stress is bad, but that isn’t the case. Good stress is the type of stress you feel when you’re excited. Your pulse quickens and your hormones surge, but there is no threat or fear.
You might feel this type of stress when you ride a roller coaster, compete in a game, do something new. Good stress is short-term and it inspires and motivates you, focuses your energy and enhances performance. BUT Bad Stress is not good for you
Steps to remove stress
1 Eliminate stress where you can. Learning how to say “no”, Dont take on more than you can do if more is put on you do your best and avoiding people who stress you out is a great place to start.
2 Accept there are events you can’t control. There are things in life beyond your control, such as someone else’s behavior. Instead of stressing about what you can’t control, focus on what you can control and how you react to the problem. That way, you are expending your energy where it can be more effective.
3 Think positive thoughts.A positive attitude can help offset difficult situations. Make an effort to think positively by looking for the upside in every situation, whether you learn from your mistakes or use major challenges as a time for personal growth. In addition, thinking about all the things you appreciate in your life, including your own positive qualities, can change your perspective.
4 Get support. Confide in family and friends, or turn to someone professional. Expressing how you feel can be cathartic. Also, it’s important to express your feelings, instead of bottling them up because that can add to your stress.
5 Add relaxation techniques to your everyday routine. Relaxation promotes overall health and gives you a chance to step away and clear your head. It can be accomplished with deep breathing exercises, meditation or even yoga.
6 Stay healthy and fit. A well-balanced diet and staying active ensures your body is better prepared to fight stress. Exercise relaxes your body and mind, while improving your mood. In fact, physical exercise has been proven to play a key role in preventing and reducing the effects of stress.
7 Get a good night’s rest. Getting enough rest is important because it gives your body time to recover from stressful events and sets you up to fight new challenges the next day.
The Butterfly
A man found the cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening
appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled
to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any
progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and could go no
further.
So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and
snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged
easily. But it had a swollen body and small shriveled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at
any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the
body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly
spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled
wings. It never was able to fly.
What the main in his kindness and haste did not understand was that
the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get
through the tiny opening were nature’s way of forcing fluid from the body of
the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved
its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were
allowed to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We
would not be as strong as we could have been. And we could never fly. So
have a nice day and struggle a little.
https://youtu.be/dQ26D_Ck158