My name is Ron White. I am a two-time USA Memory Champion and I would like to share with you lessons on building self-confidence and knowing how valuable a person you are, as taught through my “Mind of a U.S. Navy SEAL†workshops.
Do you recognize your own value? What are you worth? I’m not talking about in terms of dollars, but in terms of how you feel about yourself. I’m not talking about self-esteem – that is flexible, depending on what’s going on around you. You, on the other hand, have a value that can’t be lost, but can be misplaced. Take stock of your life (track record) and you will be amazed at what you can bring to the table you hadn’t even thought of before.
Do you believe you are capable of great things? Do you believe you have just begun to shine? When we recognize our own value we have no need to compete. We are confident we are who we should be, and are constantly striving to improve ourselves to make us stronger and more valuable to ourselves. We can’t measure our self-worth by that of others. They have their own set of values, and you have yours.
How often have you walked into a room and compared yourself to others – are you as good looking, successful, charismatic, etc.?, When we do this we are looking for evidence to make us worth less than the rest of the people there. That’s ‘glass is half-empty’ approach to life. When you enter a room and look at other people as opportunities to get to know these people, to learn how they became successful and what attracts others to them you have what one of my friends’ would say ‘your head screwed on right.’ Don’t look for what you are lacking, look for what you can contribute.    
My friend, 8-yr. veteran of the U.S. Navy SEALs, T. C. Cummings told a story about his experience: “I was in my 5th or 6th year in SEALs, stationed in a foreign country to provide disaster relief. I was one of two SEALs stationed outside the headquarters command post. While there, the Fleet Admiral paid the command post a visit. This was the man in charge of all the troops in the fleet, and a very powerful man. He was introduced and spent some time talking with us. When we were interacting with the admiral we didn’t see him as being superior, we saw what value we could bring to the relationship.â€
Do you remember the movie ‘Rudy,’ about a young man determined to play football for Notre Dame? What value did this young man bring to ND? He wasn’t a particularly good athlete, but he showed that despite failures he was able to get up and keep trying. He knew his self-worth, and knew he wasn’t even the best football player, but he was determined to succeed and this earned him the respect of his coaches, teachers, teammates, and eventually his family.
Recognize the value in yourself, and recognize value in others – which is in and of itself a valuable thing. Acknowledge what you bring to the table, and what they bring to the table. When you evaluate your own track record, something you should do periodically, you can recognize how you are appealing and do not have to be intimidated by others.
You will find this lesson on confidence and your own value among many other lessons available on the training CDs “Mind of a Navy SEAL,†and in our training “Think Like A U.S. Navy SEAL†workshops.
Sources:
“Mind of a U.S. Navy SEAL†workshop
Lessons For Living – on self-worth: http://www.lessons4living.com/wmaz16.htm
NDT Resource Center – Self-Evaluation: http://www.ndt-ed.org/TeachingResources/ClassroomTips/Self-evaluation.htm