Today’s a big day. It’s the first week of the Better You Course and the first thing I want you to do is pat yourself on the back. You showed up! You took a step toward growth and taking action. That’s a big deal because most people don’t. Most people didn’t wake up today and intentionally choose growth. But you did, and for that, you should be proud of yourself.

This course is 3 parts and we’re going to jump straight into part 1 this week. It’s all about Thinking Better and Week 1 is specifically about your beliefs and identity — the foundation of becoming a better you.

The reason why this is true is because until you think better, you will not do better. Until you see yourself as capable of success, you will not be successful. And finally, and maybe most importantly, unless you learn to believe in yourself and your potential, you will remain your biggest obstacle to success.

Whatever you want to be better at in this season of your life, it starts with a belief in yourself.

Take any activity you’ve ever been really good at in your life (video games, playing an instrument or sport, painting, etc.) one of the reasons you became so confident and successful at that endeavor is you eventually believed in yourself and your ability to improve in it.

Now, take whatever you want to get better at or do in this next season (starting a business, leading a team, improving your productivity, being more present and in control, etc.) it must start with a belief in your ability to get better at it.

If you’re second-guessing me right now, please dont. I don’t care what you’ve done, where you’ve been, or how you’ve always seen yourself — you are inherently valuable. You are capable. You are gifted.

Now for the other type of person. Maybe you’re sitting there thinking, “I don’t really struggle with how I see myself. I believe in myself… I’m a disciplined person… I make stuff happen.” And I’m sure all of that is true, but let me ask you this: if you believe in yourself so much and have your thinking in the right place when is the last time you actually took the time to encourage yourself and think about who you’re becoming.

My guess is you haven’t lately. Most people don’t.

So here’s the core concept for this week: “You become what you think about.”

If you want better habits, it starts with thinking of yourself as someone who is in control of their day and capable of better habits.

If you want to lead a team, it starts with thinking of yourself as someone who is confident and capable of influencing others.

If you want to do something creative and new, it starts with thinking of yourself as someone who can be creative.

I’m sure you already have something in mind that you want to be better in your life (your health, your finances, your job, your relationships, your habits, maybe all of the above) — but what’s most important and must be dealt with first is your mind. The habits, the routines… all of that stuff we’ll get to, but this week we’re going to take a closer look at the hardware that’s running all of those systems.