In our extensive experience as Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) practitioners (who have worked with companies of all sizes and people from different backgrounds), there is one particular client challenge that we frequently come across in the reorientation and adoption of new skills – it’s self-doubt.
The lack of confidence in oneself and one’s ability is something that we as humans have been susceptible to in our (personal or professional) lives.
While nobody is impervious to the occurrence of such a feeling, what sets people apart is how they react when faced with such emotions.
Thankfully, we’ve been able to assist such clients with the necessary NLP techniques to overcome this hurdle. Let’s explore some of them:
1) “Practice makes perfect”
Overcoming self-doubt is a proficiency, and just like any skill, one needs to spend a good amount of time to become fluent.
With NLP training, you’re encouraged to embrace and repeat positive responses/actions as a way to combat these negative sentiments when they arise.
Irrespective of how you feel, the important thing to do is remind yourself of your abilities – say it out loud and let it reverberate within you. The more times you do this, the more it permeates throughout your being and becomes second nature.
2) Alter your thoughts
Our thoughts are what make or break us – they control our emotions and actions – as such, they must be guarded with zeal. In order to overcome self-doubt changing the way one thinks becomes essential.
“With NLP training, you’re inspired to internalise and act on this action by eradicating thoughts like “I can’t!””or “Am I competent?” from your mental repository, in favour of thoughts like “I can!” and “I am competent”.
3) Be mindful of defeatist language
Just as you have to take control of your inner dialogue, you must also be attentive to your spoken words – essentially, don’t use language that undermines you.
4) Stop trying to be perfect
Striving for perfectionism is something that contributes towards to self-doubt: you want to get things done without any flaws or errors (which, let’s face it, isn’t humanly possible 24/7) as such, you become afraid of trying new things and stepping out of your comfort zone.
This is not to say that you shouldn’t want to be the best, no, aim for excellence, but be open to the fact that you might make some mistakes along the way, and learn from them.
Perfection is elusive and will hinder you from being as great as you can be.
5) To thine own self be true
Neuro linguistic programming is a great personal development tool that helps people understand themselves better. They become incredibly self-aware, better understand and mitigate against those triggers that cause them to lose confidence or feel inadequate.
The issue of self-doubt can be very nuanced – it does take some time to overcome, but as long as you’re committed to your NLP training, you’ll be on your way to becoming the best version of yourself.
