Quit underselling yourself. Here’s how.
One of the coolest people I know is an almost-90year-old man.
He has a buzzing social life, is knee-deep in redoing his house and is all over the internet dating scene. He also steers clear of a lot of his peers because they “seem so old.” There’s nothing old about this dude.
Another guy, one of the wealthiest people I know, has what some consider an inflated sense of his own abilities and potential. It’s not arrogance; he’s just consistently sure that what he’s up to is super valuable. He may objectively overestimate, but he’s also a self-made multimillionaire. He’s doing something right.
For a lot of us, underselling and downplaying comes more naturally. We lean toward pessimism because that feels safer and more realistic than giving ourselves too much credit. Optimism can make us feel unexpectedly vulnerable, and it somehow seems improper.
But it strikes me that this tendency doesn’t serve us. At best, it’s a recipe for missing out. At worst, it’s some level of misery.
Living an extraordinary life seems to require deciding — and believing — that you’re awesome.
And it’s never too late to start!
What if you threw caution to the wind and began letting yourself
dream and exaggerate your own value? Not in an ugly, big-headed way, but in a courageous and imaginative way.
I see it as a win-win: Putting on rose-colored glasses feels like joy and peace of mind in the moment, and it lays a foundation for good things to come.
Sure, things don’t always work out. Sometimes we’ll fall short. Other people may even laugh or judge. But it still seems like the way to go.
The older gentleman I mentioned is often a topic of conversation. I confess that I readily partake. It’s fun to talk about a 90
year-old in a love triangle. I hear the details with fascination and what borders on gossipy delight.
But all the while, this guy is doing his thing and totally loving life. He also literally doesn’t hear a word of it.
A true teacher to us all.
Marci Izard Sharif is an author, yoga teacher, meditation facilitator, and mother. In Feeling Matters, she writes about self-love, sharing self-care tools, stories and resources that center around knowing and being kind to yourself. For her classes and more, go to marcisharif.com.