Win Harper | Life and Leadership Coach

Reframe [riːˈfreɪm]
verb (tr)
1. to support or enclose (a picture, photograph, etc.) in a new or different frame
2. to look at, present, or think of (beliefs, ideas, relationships, etc.) in a new or different way
http://www.thefreedictionary.com

A picture might be worth a thousand words, but the right picture frame makes a big difference in how the message is received.  A friend of mine who owned a picture framing business once told me that every picture is made better by the right frame.  She also said that every picture deserves a good frame.

Do you have an image of yourself that is in an old frame?  Maybe your parents framed it for you when you were very young.  Imagine if changing your self-image was as simple as reframing an old picture? 

I watched a lot of this year’s Winter Olympics.  I really enjoyed seeing individuals competing at the highest possible level in their sport.  Many of them trained most of their lives for this one chance, and yet there was only one “winner”, one Gold Medalist.  Picture yourself dedicating your entire life for one purpose, and NOT winning.  How would you frame that image of yourself?  Would you capture that moment with a “loser” frame?  Would you surround the event with an “I did my best” frame?  Which frame would you choose?  And how would it affect your self-image, and your life?

You can and you do choose how you frame your life’s pictures.  Are you choosing frames that enhance your image or ones that diminish you?  Does the frame provide you proper boundaries or does it box you into a way of life?  The frames you choose reflect your attitude towards life and yourself, and they define your self-image.

This week look at some old pictures of yourself.  How are they framed?  What is another perspective of those images of yourself?  How would you reframe them today?