CULTIVATING BELIEF IN ONESELF
DR SUMAYA AL-NASSER, THE FIRST FEMALE SAUDI LIFE AND EXECUTIVE COACH, IS PASSIONATE ABOUT HELPING PEOPLE OVERCOME CHALLENGES
Dr Al-nasser is Sumaya the irst
female Saudi Life and Executive Coach, specialising in self-development, relationships, careers and similar. Certified by the World Federation
USA and of holding Trainers a from doctorate has penned in theology, a book she and
articles that inspires and awareness enlightenment With among over 15 her years readers. of experience, of coaching 12,000 behind hours her, she is passionate about helping people overcome life’s challenges by concentrating on personal strengths and perseverance.
“In our fast-paced lives, we often forget to cater to our emotional and mental wellbeing. We tend to ignore its
importance that will help us lead quality lives and reach our goals on both personal and
professional fronts,’’ she says.
Dr Sumaya was in Dubai recently and
spoke to Panorama about core strengths that should be intrinsic in
every individual. “If you knock on a
door and it does not open, then there is something wrong. The options are you should change the door and if that does not work
either, you change the road that leads to the door and choose a different path to reach your destination. Striving to be successful can be hard, but not giving up your goals and not accepting defeat even when it stares at you in the face is the road to success. This exercise is called perseverance and is bound to pay
dividends.’’ Dr Sumaya affirms
that personal strength is simply the inner strength that comes from believing in oneself and keeping a positive
mindset.
“The mental toughness comes from accepting and loving both your weaknesses
and strengths. If you don’t believe in yourself, nobody else will. People
will deal with you, the way you deal with yourself. Self-acceptance and the strength that comes with such acceptance, complete with faults, is the key
that will open any door you want in life. This however does not mean you ignore your weaknesses or remain in denial about these, but with self-acceptance you can work on these weaknesses and convert them into strengths.’’ A large segment of the population inhabiting this planet is bound to make resolutions with the dawn of each New Year. But exhibiting the
steely resolve to adhere to these resolutions is the challenge.
“We are well into year 2018. Resolutions would have been made, some broken too, leading to self doubt
and self blame. It is therefore vital to keep resolutions realistic. Be yourself and decide what will work best
for you, move slowly from simple to complex, thereby deriving
satisfaction from the slow scaling up. Build a better relationship
with yourselves, for that is the foundation for any self development. Understand your interests; observe
emotional reactions that each interest brings about. Deine your purpose and values in life and make sensible
good choices.’’
Goals and aspirations are other vital areas of personal growth that Dr Sumaya specialises in. “Learning is the foundation of success in achieving any goal. Learn from people who have walked this road before
you to achieve this or a similar goal, emulate them and then throw in your own creativity to reach your goal.’’ But before setting the
goal, Dr Sumaya advises that listing of values is important. Each one’s value systems would be
different and honing in on values will augment and complement the goal setting process. The values will throw light on the kind of life you
want to live, the goals that have to be set to reach that kind of life might and the have support to seek that to you
attain that goal.
“Often after deciding on a goal, midway through working
towards that goal, many people decide they are chasing wrong goals and keep changing
them frequently. This will lead to nothing but self-sabotage. Hence it is always best to spend energies on one or two major goals and three to four minor goals. The major goals can be starting a new business while the minor ones could be itness, discipline or similar. It is equally important to review progress towards these goals every three months to ensure the journey is on the right track.
“Do not be
complacent when one goal is achieved. Move on to the next without basking on just one
success. Get out of your comfort zone to push yourselves, set higher benchmarks and aspire
for more. The more goals you achieve, more will be your confidence to
aim higher.’’
Often the importance we give to our own personality development takes a back seat. This
is a commitment and a responsibility to oneself. The best of degrees will
hold no value unless self development happens.