Throughout recorded history personal worth was often measured by an individual's willingness to take risks. Perhaps Englishman John Heywood best summed up risk taking when he wrote in 1546, "Not venture nought have."

However there is an inherent difference between reckless risk and calculated risk. An old American proverb counsels against rashness: "Swift risks are often attended by precipitate falls."

So in today's unpredictable job market, how can ensure that any risk you take is worth any potential gain? One of the best ways I know is to believe in yourself. Easier said then done, you say. Then, let my Top Ten List of Ways To Believe In Yourself be your guide:

1. Think of ways you can be your best.

2. Focus on your strengths not your weaknesses.

3. Remind yourself of who you are becoming.

4. Like Magellan, have faith in yourself and know it will happen.

5. Challenge yourself to be all you can be, more so than you've ever been.

6. Encourage yourself to keep going, keep building this new you.

7. Acknowledge your successes.

8. Be unconditionally constructive.

9. Allow yourself to achieve greatness.

10.Take a stand for the success you deserve.

As your belief in yourself expands, any problems and challenges you face will lose their sense of power.

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