Faith in yourself and your abilities can propel you towards great achievements, no matter what obstacles may appear along the way. A strong sense of self-belief allows you to continue moving towards your long-term goals, even when it seems impossible that you will ever reach them.

If you read biographies of ordinary people who achieved great things, you will discover that they had to overcome many setbacks. Their stories will inspire you to move forward and achieve success

For example, Harland David Sanders (also known as Colonel Sanders), the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (now KFC), suffered a major setback at the age of 66 when his business failed and he was living on social security. This did not deter him, however, and he set out to franchise his unique fried chicken recipe to restaurants across the USA.

He had to be persistent, traveling long distances and talking with many restaurant owners, but his persistence paid off and by 1960, he had gained 400 franchised restaurants. Today, Kentucky Fried Chicken is a successful, worldwide business that still uses his original recipe.

In the nineteenth century, William E. Hickson said: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, and try again.” In rare cases, success can be achieved very quickly but success often arises after many years of trying and not giving up, no matter how many times you seem to fail. You will learn many important lessons from each apparent failure and you will be on a path that will ultimately result in your success, as long as you continue to have faith in yourself and do not give up.

However, negative thinking can erode your self-confidence. It is very important, therefore, to stop negative thoughts about yourself and your abilities as soon as they come into your head. Try to counter a negative thought with a positive one. For example, if you think, “I am not smart enough to do this,” you could immediately change your thought to: “I will be able to do this with some help.”