My heart broke when I read the hundreds of responses to my recent survey about the challenges you're facing on your entrepreneurial and spiritual path. Many of you doubt yourself, and let fear paralyze you. Well, I'm here to help you through this.



But, before I share a few of my personal strategies for maintaining belief in yourself, I first want to assure you that I have not arrived yet, (perhaps Ill feel I've arrived when I make my transition out of this physical body). Anyway, no matter how much my business has grown, no matter how much success I experience, I still have bouts of fear and doubt. It usually happens when Im stepping into something much BIGGER than before, or when I forget who I really am, on a Soul level.

In fact, just last week, I was gripped by fear and had to do a lot of inner work to lift myself out of it and take the next bold step, (as my friend Kathryn Tull would say). I pulled out every tool I had, every strategy I knew to get back on track... and with the discipline to keep my mind out of that dark abyss of fear and spend time getting quiet with myself and asking for help, I got through it.

I share this with you because I think its important for you to know that fear and doubt don't stop surfacing once you reach a certain level of success. Growth stretches you way out of your comfort zone, raises doubts and fears... and gives you the opportunity to learn from the experience, deepen your understanding of yourself, gain new insights and see things that you hadn't seen before. And, at each level of success you have, the gifts you receive from the challenges you face are so much greater than they were before.

OK, now that we've got that straightened out, and you understand that you are not alone in your disbelief, but that it is quite common among entrepreneurs on this path, lets get into some specific strategies that have helped me increase the belief I have in myself. I share these knowing that if you implement them, they'll help you, too.

1. Take care of yourself. This ones a big one. Taking care of yourself is one of the most important steps you can implement to increase belief in yourself. If you don't take care of yourself, how could you possibly be of service to others? When you're on an airplane, the flight attendant tells you to put your oxygen mask on FIRST, then you're in a position to help others.

Taking care of yourself can mean different things to different people. For me it means taking time every day to meditate and journal, exercising six times a week, asking for help when I need it (and knowing where to get it), playing with my daughter, getting enough sleep, drinking lots of water, eating well and saying no to things that don't serve me.

Get clear on what you need to take care of yourself and then do those things. When you take care of yourself in this way, it deepens your belief because you're treating yourself like someone you truly VALUE! And, that helps others value you, too.

2. Do what you say you're going to do. Someone once told me that the fastest route to boosting self-esteem and confidence is to do what you say you're going to do. This comment stuck with me because it is so true, and it works. Just think about it.... if you continually say I'm going to do X, and you don't do it, you're affirming your low self-esteem and lack of confidence.

On the other hand, when you do what you say you're going to do (call a specific person, take time to meditate, send out an email, write an article, take a walk, go to a business event, read a particular book, etc.) it BOOSTS your self-esteem and confidence. If you continually find yourself faced with lack of belief, chances are you have a history of breaking your word to yourself. Start keeping your word to the most important person (you) and watch your belief in yourself skyrocket.

3. Trust in your Divine plan. This is the fourth component of my definition of a conscious entrepreneur because its another critical aspect to your success. When disbelief, lack, fear and doubt creep in, you've got to deepen your trust in a higher/Divine plan. Everything in your life is happening for a reason... even the challenges, pain and fear you may be facing today.

So, the next time you feel your lack of faith surfacing or lack of belief showing up again, I invite you to take a close look at what these feelings are here to show you. (They are here to point you in the RIGHT direction.) So, rather than get angry and scared, instead ask yourself, What am I meant to learn from this experience? What good is here for me to discover? What shift am I supposed to embrace? And, I'm telling you, when you dig deep enough to have absolute trust that all is unfolding with Divine perfection, you WILL find that nugget of insight that'll change everything. This strategy alone has saved me on more occasions than I care to count. And, it will for you, too.

I know I'm just barely touching the tip of the iceberg here on this topic, but I wanted to give you something to get started with. So, please embrace one of these strategies today and begin believing in yourself at a whole new level.

Copyright (c) 2008 Christine Kloser