We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sal Cerda a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sal, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
I developed my confidence and self-esteem by accepting myself. I used to dislike who I was, had self-esteem issues, I was very shy and I felt like no matter what I did I could not change it.
Then one day, I decided enough was enough and told myself that I was going to change my life and dictate my circumstances instead of letting my circumstances dictate where my life went.
I developed a 5 step technique that helped me be confident and gain my self-esteem back:
1. Acceptance of self. We tend to ignore those feelings or part of ourselves we don’t like, instead of ignoring and suppressing them I decided to explore them and accept them as part of me.
2. Perspective shift. I relived all those moments that were traumatic in my life, all those moments that I had struggled with life and found some good in them. Instead of thinking about them as all bad, I shifted and focused on the good they brought. Strength, resilience, experience, grit, etc.
3. Forgiveness. Once I shifted my perspective on the baggage I was carrying around for years, it was much easier for me to let it go. This is because that bad memory now has some good in it, I learned that if it wasn’t for those bad times I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the good times.
4. Future self. I imagined what my future self could be, the best ME I could think of. Once I did that, I began to act and do everything that future me would need to in order to be that person. Every little action we take is either going to get us closer or farther from who we really want to be.
5. Cultural change. I made a change to my “friends” list and eliminated every relationship that was not bringing joy to my life. I began to find people that were doing what I wanted to do, people that could mentor and help me. That pushed me to grow.
To this day, I use these 5 steps I created almost 2 decades ago. Use and reuse them daily and watch how your confidence and self-esteem skyrockets.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My office culture is transparency and honesty. Since we opened in 2019 we have worked with thousands of people. We always offer help and advice and look out for our customers. We believe by giving information we are able to elevate their knowledge about insurance. We are able to educate them on how we can help protect them and their income. We are able to empower them and help them make a better decision whether they chose us or another company..
We love to talk to and get to know our customers and become friends with them. That makes it exciting for us. We love when people share stories, struggles, fun places to go eat or hang out. We basically become a bigger family.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Perseverance, self-awareness and honesty. Persevere on your life’s objectives, on your growth and to always go forward one step at a time. Self-awareness is important because you must look inside to get to know the real you and accept yourself first, before you can make any changes. You must name it before you can take it. Honesty starts with yourself, no lying to yourself which we tend to do often. Honesty towards others because it will help them and in return help you.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
A long time ago one of my mentors gave me a book called “The Secret”. I read it and it just clicked with what I already believed. What has really stuck with me is that everything that happens to you is what you attract. I initially struggled with this because I never wished anything bad to happen to me, but it still did. It was a hard pill to swallow knowing that I was the cause of everything in my life. When I understood that every little thing I think, say or do can lead me to a better path or a worse path. The choice is always yours to make. Make better decisions that align with your future self and watch how your life will change for the better.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.salcerda.com
- Instagram: Salcerdasf
- Facebook: Salcerdasf
- Linkedin: Salcerdasf
- Yelp: Sal Cerda State Farm
