Your self-concept is the bundle of facts, opinions, beliefs, and perceptions about yourself that are present in your life every moment of every day.12 The self-concept you have today reflects information you have received from others and life events that occurred throughout childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. You are consciously aware of some things you have been conditioned to believe about yourself. But many comments and events that have shaped your self-concept are processed at the unconscious level and continue to influence your judgments, feelings, and behaviors whether you are aware of them or not.13

Phillip McGraw, author of Self Matters, says we often sabotage our own success by adopting limiting beliefs. These are the specific things we think about that cause us to conclude that we are not capable of achieving success. These beliefs restrict our thinking and our actions.14 McGraw, better known as “Dr. Phil,” has developed a one-sentence guide to understanding the importance of your self-concept: The past reaches into the present, and programs the future, by your recollections and your internal rhetoric about what you perceived to have happened in your life.15 Past experiences and events, which McGraw describes as “defining moments,” can influence your thinking for a lifetime.

How can you develop a more positive self-concept? How can you get rid of self-destructive ways of thinking? Bringing your current self-concept out into the open is the first step in understanding who you are, what you can do, and where you are going. Improving your self-concept does not happen overnight, but it can happen. A few practical approaches are summarized as follows:

1. Focus on the future and stop being overly concerned with past mistakes or failures. We should learn from past errors, but they should not immobilize us.

2. Develop expertise in selected areas. By developing “expert power,” you not only improve your self-image but also increase the value of your contributions to your employer and your customers.

3. Learn to develop a positive mental attitude. To develop a more positive outlook, read books and view YouTube videos and DVDs that describe ways to develop a positive mental attitude.

Consider materials developed by Daniel Pink, Harvey Mackay, Jack Canfield, Stephen Covey, Brian Tracy, Dale Carnegie, and Phillip McGraw.

Later in this chapter, you will learn how to develop and initiate a plan for self-improvement. If you want to improve your self-image, consider adopting this plan.