Tough Moments Happen to Us All

Do you ever have days when you question the value you bring to the world? Maybe you are between jobs, or facing the end of a relationship, or simply feeling uninspired?

These moments happen to all of us. We all get discouraged at times and may lose sight of what we bring to the world.

Every Life Has Value

What if I told you that even when you feel your worst, you always have value? So does every single other person in the world no matter what their circumstances.

It's important to remember that.

Recognize Your Value

Our value may not always be obvious. It does not have to be tied to a job or physical appearance. The innate value each of us carries comes from a much deeper place.

To live a full life, we need to pause for a moment and genuinely recognize the value we contribute to the world. We need to hold that value with self-awareness and help it to grow.

See Yourself as Others Do

You may never know how much your small acts of kindness towards friends, family, and neighbours mean. You may not see your talent in the workplace for encouraging others or collaborating well. It's far too easy to miss the real markers of our value as a person.

As a society, we tend to focus on performance metrics, profit, or the accumulation of awards to assess a person's value. But if we do that, we miss a huge part of our overall value.

That's because our true value is larger than the measurements just described. Our true value lasts for a lifetime; it's not affected by changing circumstances. It's about who we are inside.

The Value Mindset

Albert Einstein said, "Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value." The value mindset can be cultivated. All it takes is awareness and effort.

Here are some ideas for helping yourself recognize your true value to the world:

• Listen to what you say about yourself inside your own head. We all fall victim to negative thinking at times, especially if we compare ourselves to others. The first step towards changing negative thoughts is to recognize you're having them.
• Challenge your inner critic. Once you have recognized a negative thought, explore it. Take on the mindset of a scientist and carefully examine the evidence. Soon, you will find reasons to let go of the false belief and see yourself for who you really are.
• Savour moments of recognition from others. It is human nature to focus more on criticism than on compliments. But if you want to recognize your true value, you need to really hear the good things people say about you.
• Engage in things you love doing. Whenever you spend time using your talents and exploring your interests, the qualities that make you important to the world naturally reveal themselves.
• Spend time with people who build you up. The people you spend time with have a huge impact on how you feel about yourself. People who recognize their own value tend to be particularly good at recognizing the value in others. Spend as much time around those people as you can.
• Help others. The best way to understand your value is to help someone else. People are always worth your time and effort. Helping one another makes us whole. The more you give, the more you get in return.

Live Wholeheartedly

Value is supported by bravery. To recognize your own value and show it to others, you need to show up fully in your life. Share your interests, insights, and skills.

And remember, you have value. "The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself." –Carl Sagan

Your Friends,
The UpCloseTeam