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Be your own best skeptic
The story you tell yourself is almost guaranteed to be false.
There is likely a mountain of evidence that prove parts of it wrong, but you’ll cling to the parts that validate your story.
Case in point: A friend of mine was rejected from housing application yesterday, despite feeling like the perfect candidate for the space and a good rapport with the landlord. The news them into a confused state, “How was I not good enough?”
Turns out the competing tenant offered above the asking price.
While I find true the adage ‘If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail,’ there are infinite factors that you can’t anticipate, and will likely never know, in many of the stories you tell yourself.
But by the same token, there are forces working in your favor that you simply can’t see.
First ever reader prompt: Reply to this email with a sentence or two about what story you’re telling yourself that’s bad for your self-esteem, and then present some evidence that proves your story wrong.

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