Self-Efficacy

 I learned the term self-efficacy in school while reading a psychology book. 

"Self-efficacy is the belief in your own ability to succeed in achieving a goal, having the confidence to know you can do whatever you set your mind to by managing how you think, feel, and behave."

"Self-efficacy refers to an individual's belief in his or her capacity to execute behaviors necessary to produce specific performance attainments. Self-efficacy reflects confidence in the ability to exert control over one's own motivation, behavior and social environment."

People with high self-efficacy have better health, wealth, relationships, eating habits, and are better at achieving their goals. They also have less negative behaviors and addictions because they also understand internal locus of control. 

You are in control of you. You can regulate your emotions and thoughts. You can become who you want to be. You can achieve what you want to accomplish. You can define what success is to you and be as successful as you want to be. 

When you set a goal, you will almost always run into walls. Things that try to stop you from attaining your goal. Someone with low self-efficacy whines, complains and gives up. The person with high self-efficacy begins to strategize. Can I go around it? Can I break through it? Can I build a ladder to go over it? Can I dig a hole under it? Is there someone who can help me in this situation? What does it take to overcome the challenges in order for me to succeed?

We will all at some point get knocked down. We will all go through a variety of disappointments, losses, and hardships. We will need to learn how to grieve. How to heal and recover. We will go through hurt, pain, and times of suffering.

The strongest people are the ones that persevere and endure. The strongest people are those that plant their feet on the rock. The strongest people are the ones with determination in their heart to never give up. The strongest people understand failure and yet get back up. The strongest people are those who trust in God as their strength.

God is our healer. God is our comforter. God is our Father, our Friend, our Savior, our Lord, our King, our Shepherd, and our Counselor. With God, you can overcome any trial or circumstance. When you feel alone, sad, empty, tired, angry, or frustrated, it is God who can restore and renew us. 

Back in da old times depending on where you lived. You didn't have much options in terms of career and vocation. Nowadays, in a land of opportunity, business, and freedom, we have the ability to create our own paths. 

We are Kings and Queens. We have a lot of freedom living in America. This is really the best time to be living. If you can make minimum wage, you're in the top wealthiest in the world. In perspective, people in poverty and third world countries don't have access to things like basic needs. And then here we are complaining and stressing out that the wifi went out.

My point is that, if you're reading this, you have infinite capacities to do whatever you want. You can be whoever you want. You can choose to grow a beautiful garden. You can choose to pursue your passions. You can learn and become more knowledgeable. You can train to become stronger. You can develop better values, virtues, and character traits. Self-development is both wisdom and power combined.

I was reading an article and there was a point I needed to hear. It said something along the lines of, "You're important and you're valuable. You know that right?" And for some reason, I needed that reminder. Whether or not others acknowledge you or not, you must remember your worth. 

There's folks that look up to me as an example. Some folks treat me like I'm some sort of celebrity. And I think it's funny, because I know I am just a regular and normal dude. But every once in a while, I think to myself.. No.. I don't want to be just a regular and normal dude. I want to be a Rockstar, a Warrior, a Champion. Nay. I am.

I am powerful, strong, whole, full, and abundant. I am creative, fun, confident, kind, caring and intelligent. What if you replaced all your negative adjectives with positive traits and characteristics? What if you spoke powerful affirmations to yourself so much that you began to embody those attributes? 

What if you could have anything you wanted in life? What if you could be whoever you wanted to be? Well, the truth is that you can. It comes down to making it happen. Put wheels on your ideas. With consistency, hard work, and discipline, I think you can create the life you want. What's stopping you? The only person in your way is yourself. Get out of your own way, and get it all done. Make a list of things you want to do and do it all. Because you can and you're fully capable.  

Reinvent yourself. Focus on your goals. Continue to make new goals. Sharpen your strengths. Create the life you want. 

I often get caught up in my head. I overthink. I over critique. I begin to dwell on the past, rather than focus on doing things in the present. Don't dwell, Do. Stop making excuses. We have the ability to do great things. We can control our self-esteem, our level of confidence, and how we regulate our emotions. We are in control of our thoughts and not the other way around.

You can control your work ethic. You control how you manage your time. You control your degree of spirituality. You're responsible for your health, your relationships, your career, your finances, and all your choices. If there is something outside of your control, then why waste your time trying to change things that aren't in your sphere of influence. 

What was a side hustle, blew up into a business. I didn't really know much about entrepreneurship. But I learned the ins and outs. Developed a very business mindset. It all has to do with self-efficacy. Believing you can succeed. Learning and strategizing what are the best ways to grow the business. There's the mentality side of things, and then there's the practicality side of things. Do it all. Learn, apply, repeat.

There are multiple ways to make a living. Sometimes we think I just need a job. Yes. But why stop there? How can you maximize your time and energy to where you can have multiple means of making income? I used to see 100k a year as something impossible for me. Something I wouldn't ever attain. It starts with an idea, a belief, and then doing everything you can to make it happen. Success is not just wealth. Success is happiness. I want to be successful in all areas of life. Happiness is found in God, self-love, good people, holistic health, purpose, and meaning. The sky is the limit.

I gained experience in making business partners, constantly reassessing what works or doesnt, trying to market your brand, keeping track of sales, restocking inventory/ supplies, making investments, figuring out the best way to ship products, building rapport with customers, being professional, dealing with mistakes, and learning how to maximize revenue.

What I like about entrepreneurship is that you have no one to blame but yourself. There is no 8-5 job. It's a 24/7. Yes you can take days off, but time is money. There's always projects to work on. There's always more you can do. The more you put in, the more that comes out. So therefore, grind, be patient, and persistent. 

I started with 5k, 10k, then 15k in a month. Sold 20k in two weeks. And in my last two weeks, I sold 25k in revenue! I've pumped out over 1000 orders. Sold locally at the swapmeet, the mall, stores, and online. In a few months from now, I project doing at least 60-75k in sales per month. My guess is now that I have a solid formula and system down, I just need to stay consistent with it. 

I can basically make more in 8 hours then what I used to make working a full week. I can make more in one week then what I was making in a month. And one of the biggest determining factors is work ethic. It's about being innovative, understanding your consumers, being consistent, and putting more time and energy into the business. There's so much potential. Do you make goals? Why set them low? Do you pursue them relentlessly? 

Most of my blogs follow a common thought of, How can I become better? How can I improve myself? How can I become closer to my best self? The answer is complex because there is not one simple answer. The answer is, in all ways. 

How do you grow in anything? You train and teach yourself to grow. Visualization is key. With the belief to change, you can develop self-confidence and self-discipline. With self-love and self-care, you strengthen your inner self. With a strong mind, you can seriously accomplish anything. 

Success although often seen as financial is not always about being the most financially stable. I would rather make less money, have enough to meet my needs, enough to invest, and have family and happiness doing what I love, rather than doing a job I absolutely hate waking up to. 

My friend's motto is, "Do it all." Sometimes we think, oh I can only do this or that. No the truth is you can do it all. You can make time for the priorities that are important to you. Success is also found in developing great friendships. Success is found in excellent health. Success is achieving your personal goals. Success is finding purpose in what you do. Success is found in progress, transformation, and influence. Success is found in greater knowledge, profound strength, and happiness.

True greatness is found in deep relationship with God, yourself, others. True worship is in action, truth, and obedience. Be more, Be better, Be stronger. When you train your mind to be goal-driven, you build the confidence to grind, persevere, and work hard. You need to keep pursuing your dreams until they become a reality.

You need to try different opportunities and avenues. You fail at things. You'll run into dead ends. You'll make mistakes. But you can come back even stronger. And eventually, you'll find something that works well. Then it's a matter of continuing to execute, operate, and grind daily. It's the consistency to doing what's right and good. What you put in is what you get out. So invest your time, money, energy, and resources to multiply what you have into more. 

Self-belief can give you the energy and confidence to accomplish great things. I was listening to a song on the radio about having high hopes. And it was about inspiring to be truly incredible. To go beyond mediocracy. To strive to be the best. And it was basically a message to everyone that you can be your full potential. You can surpass expectations. You can be happy even if life isn't exactly how you want. Every day is an opportunity to become better. 

Sometimes I get a breath of inspiration. And I think it's all about believing you can achieve what you want. If it's a happy relationship, a promotion, a new job, a new business, or whatever it is. You can create whatever you want. Is it always easy? No. It's never easy. It takes time, discipline, and real perseverance to keep fighting.

As you pursue your vocation and journey, I think it's also important to help encourage those around you as well. When you're grounded, strong, and happy, you can then teach and help others.