Many years ago, when I was in high school, I was thinking about what made the popular girls popular. (Yes, I know, this is probably not something every 10th grader thinks about, but you have to understand that I have spent a lifetime observing why people do the things they do.) So, anyway, I was watching these girls and decided that it wasnt the hair or the make up or the clothes that made them popular, it was their self-confidence.

As soon as I realized that, I started having a conversation with myself about how I was going to improve my own self-confidence. I decided that a few things would help: 1. smile as much as possible; 2. sit up straight and walk tall; 3. be friendly with everyone; and 4. find qualities that I liked about myself and concentrate on those. Now, these may seem petty and simplistic, but they worked. The biggest thing I realized was that nobody could make me feel good about myself I had to do that myself. The best way to do that is to have good, positive self-talk.

That plan started a path to becoming who I am today. It has taken me twenty years to get here, but I feel as though I am exactly where I need to be. The interesting thing to me is that it all started with a conversation with myself about how I wanted to change. I proved to myself that my thoughts really do create my reality.