How Important is Your Self-Image?

Considering that everything you do in your life and that every action you take stems from the self-image you have of yourself, it is pretty darn important.  Maxwell Maltz, M.D., F.I.C.S., author of The New Psycho-Cybernetics, states, "The self-image controls what you can and cannot accomplish, what is difficult or easy for you, even how others respond to you just as certainly and scientifically as a thermostat controls the temperature in your home."  Wow!  Maltz describes the self-image as the "mental blueprint" or "picture" we hold of ourselves.  Basically, it is who you think you are.

Maltz describes how our beliefs about ourselves have "unconsciously been formed from our past experiences, our successes and failures, our humiliations, our triumphs, and the way other people have reacted to us, especially in early childhood."  He says that these experiences lead us to develop ideas and beliefs about ourselves, and that these beliefs become "truths" for us.  He points out that, unfortunately, we don't question the credibility of these "truths" and we operate our lives from them.  Of course, then, the results we get in our lives validate our "truths" enabling us to justify that they are indeed true.

"All your actions, feelings, behavior, even your abilities, are always consistent with the self-image," says Maltz.  Most of us have never even given our self-image a second thought.  Our lives are running on auto-pilot and we accept certain things about ourselves that may or may not be true. We have all probably heard ourselves saying, "that's just the way I am."  So, how do you change your self image?  Each of us has to assess ourselves, look at our patterns, and ask ourselves some questions.  If you've been struggling with something for a long time, take a look at your self-image in that area.  Might your self-image be contributing to your continued difficulty?

Ultimately, your most sincere and best efforts will be sabotaged by a negative self-image.  However, if you're able to identify how your self-image is negatively affecting your life you can begin to create a new self-image.  It will require some inner work to develop a new self-image, but the long-term positive impact it can have on your life will be worth it.  You'll begin to behave in ways that are consistent with your new self-image and you'll open up your life to many new and different opportunities and possibilities that didn't exist in the old self-image scenario.

The bottom line is that your self-image is the key to accomplishing all that you want and is at the root of many of your challenges and failures.  Having the right self-image may be the solution to your current struggles.  That's really good news because now you know that you have more control over how things are going in your life and fewer excuses for not making the changes that you want to make.

For an in-depth look at the self-image and related proven techniques for improving your life, please read, The New Psycho-Cybernetics, by Maxwell Malt, M.D., F.I.C.S.