Summarize:

The messages you tell yourself determine your perception of yourself, as well as your ability to accomplish your goals. If your inner dialogue is negative, you may become the greatest obstacle to your own success. Look for the following types of statements: "I'm not good enough." "Everyone knows I don't belong here." "I'll probably just fail again." "Everyone else is ahead of me/doing better than I am." "I waited too long/wasted too much time." Notice when your inner voice feeds you negative messages. When this happens, replace that thought with a positive message. Over time, the negative messages should diminish. As an example, you might notice this negative thought: "I'll never be able to finish a race that long." You could replace that with, "Everyone starts somewhere. If I work hard, train smart, and stick to it, I can accomplish my goal." It's normal to have fears, but they can hold you back if they're left unchecked. You need to figure out what you're afraid of so you can confront it. Question the reasons behind your fears, then face them head on to challenge their truth. Ask yourself questions like these: What am I afraid will happen? What in my past has made me afraid to put myself out there? Why do I think I will fail? What will happen if I fail? How can I overcome my fear? Trying to suppress your feelings won't make them go away. Instead, they'll just bubble beneath the surface waiting to explode. Let your emotions come and acknowledge how you feel. Then, release them. For example, you may notice you feel sad about losing a competition. Say to yourself, "I'm sad right now because I really wanted to win." Allow this feeling to pass. Don't let someone else's life become your measuring stick for yours. You'll always come up short because you only see the highlights in their life, not the daily struggles. No one's journey is the same as yours, so you can only compare yourself to you. Use the past version of you as your measuring stick. As long as you're improving upon yesterday, you're on the right track! For example, don't compare your life to what you see posted on social media. People usually post only their best moments and may even misrepresent how well they're doing. It's not a fair comparison!
Confront your inner dialogue that holds you back. Counter negative inner dialogue with positive self-talk. Determine the source of your fears about failure or success. Acknowledge your feelings without letting them control you. Stop comparing yourself to others.