Waking Up Is Hard To Do: Selling Yourself Short

Good Life Content
Aug 25, 2017 · 6 min read

If you always do what you always did, you’ll always have what you always got. If you’re unhappy, change course. If you’re frustrated, evolve. If you’re disappointed, look elsewhere. If you’re selling yourself short, it’s time for a wake up call.

Settling. Content. Satisfied. All mindsets to avoid. You must convince yourself that you will never settle, will never be content, and will never be satisfied. From these three words follow others like bitterness, regret, and disappointment. There is too much to experience in this world for you to reach a point of contentment and satisfaction. You can never realize your full potential unless you stop selling yourself short. In order to tap into the energy you possess, you must believe that you deserve all that you desire. You must believe that you are worthy, talented, and equipped with whatever tools required to achieve your goals. If you do not begin with this mindset, whatever growth that follows will be stinted to the extent that you doubt yourself. In other words, you can only grow and evolve so far as you truly believe you can — not think or wish you could — believe.

Millions of people all over the world are seemingly trapped in jobs they don’t enjoy. Millions of people drag themselves on each day in a setting that does not motivate them, does not inspire or challenge them. MILLIONS! Aside from the fall in performance which undoubtedly results from an unhappy employee, there are much more dire consequences that occur to one’s psyche. When you spend too much time in a state of disengagement your mental muscles begin to atrophy from lack of attention. Just like our physical muscles require consistent training and exercise in order to grow, so too do our mental ones. Your daily routine should consistently both challenge you on a mental level and move you on a spiritual level. In a state of disengagement your imagination dulls from disuse, your problem solving skills weaken, your confidence and personal initiative are not entertained and therefore shrink, your productive habits fall into disarray, and you begin to undervalue the services you provide. The instant you begin to undervalue yourself, you are selling yourself short.

The truth is, it is not your employer that’s punishing you; it is not your work place that’s punishing you; it is you! You are punishing yourself by remaining in a state of unease and discontent. You are tearing down the pillars of your security, of confidence, of self esteem and of personal efficacy. It’s too easy to say, well I’ll just wait for a promotion or well there’s just nothing I can do about it or what else am I supposed to do? What else are you supposed to do? Anything! Do anything you want! You’re not beholden to a certain field or vocation, not even the one you may have studied in college. Jobs are much more engaging if you have a particular vested interest in that which you are doing — shocking I know. If you’re unhappy where you are in life and ask the question, what can I do? The answer is simple — you can do anything. Surely there’s something else in this world you will find joy from. Start to make the transition towards whatever that may be, and do not be deterred if others don’t “get” what you are trying to do. You have just as much a right to your aspirations as everyone else, so why not rise to them?

One who considers oneself to be a positive person might say, I know it will work out eventually. This is not necessarily a bad outlook; you’re being positive, having faith. But what are you doing to bring about the good? Are you making yourself available to receive the good that will come? Are you putting yourself in a position to take full advantage of it when it does come? To be successful in anything you must believe two things: the future can be better than the present, and you have the power to make it so. You alone are responsible for your personal and spiritual growth, and you owe it to yourself to soak up as much of this world is you possibly can in this short time we’re on it. Learning is evolving, it expands our collective awareness. It enhances you as an individual and, in turn, enhances what you bring forth to the world. Find something that holds your interest and attention, challenges you and rewards you.

As you start to make this transition, do not be overly consumed with the finances that accompany them. Financial stability is, of course, an essential element to the careers we choose, but it should not be the decisive element. When you choose your vocation based upon pay potential, you often end up sacrificing the things you want from a job.

You live life according to what you demand from life. The amount of money you make has nothing to do with the vocation that you choose. There are rich lawyers and poor lawyers, there are rich plumbers and there are poor plumbers. The difference between those rich and those poor is one fundamental thing — attitude. Those rich chose to seize opportunity when it inevitably came about; those poor chose not to speak up and rather to wait for the “right opportunity”. Realize that no perfect opportunity ever comes your way. Further, rarely do opportunities come our way at all unless we are actively seeking them and actively willing to pursue them. Instead of wallowing in visions of your dream job or sulking in unhappiness at your desk, channel that energy into possibilities outside your current circumstances that you wish to bring into your life.

The key thing here is compartmentalization. It’s ok to search for a new job while in your current one. In fact, it’s natural. It is the tendency and the yearning to evolve and move forward that is inherent in everyone. However, you cannot allow your feelings toward searching for your next job affect performance at your current job. This is where we often go awry. Poor performance or poor reviews from your current position never translate to commendations for your next one.

As this article concludes I want to insert one additional thought: these words are not intended as encouragement to quit your job if you are unhappy. It goes without saying that you should give your full effort to your employer while working for them. It goes without saying that the right mindset coupled with the habit of doing more than paid for almost always results in positive, preferable outcomes, thus curing many of the woes you might find yourself struggling with.

The intended message is that time should not be wasted doing something you don’t enjoy. We’re supposed to work for some 40 years! Does it not sound much less daunting when we know we’ll enjoy our work for all those years? Pursue your passions wholeheartedly. Recognize the fact that you deserve to always be happy and successful in whatever endeavor you choose from life; appreciate the lessons that accompany each and every challenge you are faced with. One who does not learn from mistakes can never tap into their full and waiting potential.

In conclusion of this article, I have inserted a short story from someone of notable success in their profession:


Now when I was 15 years old I had a very important person in my life come to me and say to me,

“Who is your hero?”

I said, “I don’t know, I gotta think about that. Give me a couple weeks.”

I came back two weeks later, this person comes up and says,

“Who’s your hero?”

“I thought about it, you know who it is? It’s me in ten years.”

So I turned 25.

Ten years later and this same person comes up to me and goes,

“So, are you your hero?”

I said, “Not even close!”

“What! Why?”

“Because my hero is me at 35.”

So you see, every day, every week, every month, and every year of my life my hero is always 10 years ahead of me.

I’m never going to be my hero, I’m not going to attain that.

I know I’m not, and that’s just fine with me, because that keeps me with someone to keep on chasing.

So, to any of us, whatever those things are, whatever it is we look up to, whoever it is we’re chasing, to that I say Amen. To that I say just keep living.


Don’t sell yourself short. Be the person you always imagined, do the things you always imagined. Be your own hero.

Thank you for reading this installment of Waking Up Is Hard To Do. As always, I encourage you to apply these words to your own life, and to share them with whomever you believe may benefit from them. Spread the positive energy with good intention and watch it return to you in abundance. Please feel free to leave comments, questions, or reach out directly at wakeupcontent@gmail.com.

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