Read Part 1 Read Part 2 Other ways to build your self-confidence include:

• Using affirmations about patience.
• Visualizing yourself achieving your goal.
• Giving yourself credit for every baby step you take and,
• Making a list of all the successes you've had in your life up to this point

Long-term success is a step-by-step process. Consider how a child begins to walk. Long before he or she can take the first step there are many preparatory steps such as rolling over, sitting up, scooting on his or her belly, crawling, exploring in a walker, standing with support, taking steps while holding a parent’s hand and finally taking a first independent step. The first steps are followed by many falls. One step, fall, one step, fall, two steps, fall over and over again until finally one can stand and walk on his or her own. Each of the preparatory steps is important and necessary. Each one counts. Each day you go to work, each dollar you put in the bank, each morsel of food you leave on your plate, each day you attend class -- it all counts. Our problems come when impatience takes over and we refuse to acknowledge the baby steps. When we force ourselves to move forward we end up further behind than we were to begin with and our self-esteem takes a beating. Come back next week to read part 4.