What do you feed your mind? Self coaching tip 2

Many people feed their mind with television - stories of the rich and famous, reality television shows, and soaps. If your sense of personal worth and ideas of success become tied up with what you view, what is your current take on what it means to be successful and worthy? What percentage of your television viewing time would you say is genuinely educational? What programs do you watch that have helped you learn something new about your self or increased your knowledge?

Let's move onto books. What books have you read in the last year? Which titles have helped you grow as a person by challenging your beliefs? Which books have taught you a new way of doing things?

Seeing your mind as an ally in your life makes it easier to live out the life you want. Here are some suggestions on how you can feed your mind a regular diet of success and motivation to raise its levels of fitness and flexibility.

1. Take time out to read success stories, whether in a magazine, book, website or blog.

2. Listen to CDs by proven motivational speakers. We absorb a lot of information subconsciously by listening. Check out your local library and bookstore for CDs.

3. Sign up online to receive daily motivational quotes. Buy a motivational calendar Choose material that relates to your own goals - for e.g., business, sport, personal development.

4. Indulge in positive self talk that encourages, praise, motivates and supports you. Do it in front of the mirror.

5. Be successful now. Often we won't allow ourselves to feel successful before we have achieved a goal (say, to get a new car). Allow yourself to think of yourself as already successful in life - after all, if you've set yourself a goal, you must have tasted success somewhere before this point. Proceed as if you're already successful and now you're going to be more successful.