We are constantly telling ourselves stories about who we are and what we are capable of achieving. Some of those stories are about past pain from our childhood, some are about the future and some are not even true. All of the narratives that we repeat to ourselves—both of the fiction and nonfiction varieties—are what we internalize and use to create self-identity.The stories we tell ourselves about our shortcomings and failures fuel the negative self-talk that leads us to accept the myth of a single narrative—a belief in only one version of what our life can look like. And, it is our interpretation of the past and how we project the future that determines the roads we take to all of our tomorrows. Today, set your intentions to begin to listen to your stories and instead of believing the narratives that tell you what you can’t do, choose to focus on what is in your control. Instead of repeating over and over about how much you have suffered or how you were victimized, tell yourself the stories about those times when you were courageous. Tell stories about your strength, perseverance, and resilience. Tell stories about how strong you are. Tell the stories of your survival. The ones where you got through the hardest of times and experienced joy again. The stories where you knew in your bones that life was worth living.You have those stories. Those are the ones to repeat today and going forward. Tell them over and over again so you never forget who you really are. Change your story and you will change your world.

Just for today, I do a mental housekeeping, making room for new positive thoughts and a new life story. I am willing to release old negative thoughts. They are only thoughts that stand in my way. My new thoughts are positive and fulfilling. I know that the thoughts that I choose to think and believe now are creating my future. These thoughts my experiences tomorrow, next week and next year. I do not fix my problems. I fix my thinking and my problems fix themselves. Life supports me in every possible way and everything is working out for my highest good. And so it is.