"There is only one you for all time. Fearlessly be yourself.” - Anthony Rapp.

I read a post the other day I didn't like. The post itself was fine, it was an interesting dissection of a comment made to the writer by a friend. What I didn't like was an offhand comment the blogger made about herself. I have written before that we don't need to believe everything we think, and that I think we'd all be so much happier with a little Kanye in our head. The real question is why do we self sabotage? Why do we get in our own way? Why are we the voice that puts us down?

We can learn a lot from young children. A three or four year old thinks everything they do is great. They don't compare themselves to others, they just look at what they made or did and love it for the effort they put into it. They love the way they look, no matter if they're still in their pyjama pants and haven't brushed their hair. We need to start to learn from those who are evidently wiser than we are.

We need to be our own best friend. You hear that voice telling you that you're fat, ugly or hopeless, tell it to shut up. Literally say out loud "No. Not today".You wouldn't let someone talk to a friend like that, so why do you let someone say it to you?

Value yourself. See the value in all that you do. Inner peace comes once you remove the drama in your head.

My challenge to all of you for this week, is try it. When you feel doubt come in, say "Why not me?" and write the piece, enter the competition, run the race - whatever it is you want to do. When you look in the mirror and the negative thoughts creep in, ask yourself what Kanye would say? When you put yourself down out of habit, stop and rephrase it. Say it out loud in the positive. If you catch a friend doing the same, stop them. Drag them along with you.

You are valuable and your opinion of yourself is worth more than the opinion of others. This week, be awesome. Own it and try whatever you want to, even if it feels awkward or unnatural. Like Kanye says “I refuse to follow the rules where society tries to control people with low self-esteem"

Let me know how it goes. I'm going to do it too. Let's see if there's a difference (or we get a grammy)?

Linking with #ParentPower as I'm noticing this mass of insecuriteis is hitting my youngest's peer group and we need to lead the way on this. Around 11-12 they seem to start doubting themselves and their worth - just in time for High School!