Frank Sinatra sang it many years ago and it’s still true: the best is yet to come, from passing the NPTE to starting your career as a physical therapist. Every goal and dream you have will come to fruition and your relationships will flourish. While it’s unreasonable to expect perfection, life can and will be what you have always dreamed.

These thoughts are not pie in the sky thinking but rather, the types of affirmation I remind myself of regularly. Truthfully, these are the kinds of positive thoughts that help me to keep pushing, keep striving, and keep succeeding. And I know they can also help you in passing the NPTE and in life.

When Life Gives You Lemons

Someone once said that death has gotta be easy because life is hard. I don’t think they were far off when they made this statement! I mean, life has knocked us all down at some point and, whether we admit it or not, sometimes it’s extremely difficult to get back up and keep going. You’ve probably heard the common expression starting with, “When life gives you lemons” but we can get so caught up in the sourness of the lemons, how bad it tastes and feels, that we forget to make the lemonade that’s supposed to finish the sentence! It’s perception that gives us the ability to think beyond the bitterness to become the engineers who design and structure our own lives.

Believing In Yourself

I remember the insecurities I faced as a younger man and the mental battles I overcame. Most importantly though, I know what I can still achieve. The only roadblocks on my path to success then and now are the ones I allow myself to believe are there. I would often create new hurdles to jump in order to reach my goals. I bet the same is true for you.

But I discovered a secret that changed absolutely everything for me. This one secret helped enriched my relationships, presented me with more opportunities, and improved my happiness in life. The secret was simple but not simple to achieve: I needed to start believing in myself! I had to work on my self-confidence because it’s evident that there’s a direct correlation, the more confident a person becomes, the better their efficiency in the various aspects of their life. For your confidence in yourself to grow, you must work on yourself continuously. The same is true of passing the NPTE. The more work you put in, and the smarter you plan, think, study and strategize your NPTE prep, the more confidence you will have to take and dominate the exam.

Complacency and Perfection

It’s a common misperception, but the opposite of complacency is not perfection. It’s true that the lack of confidence I once had arose from the level of complacency in my life. This is because when we allow ourselves to get comfortable, we may indirectly tell our subconscious minds there is no more room for growth. Yet striving for perfection may be equally problematic.

To combat complacency we must chase self-progression but a mistake that we all make at some point is focusing too much on perfection. This is a flawed way of thinking. Instead of pursuing a perfection which does not exist, focus on self-progression! On the other side of your self-progression journey is a confidence that’s unmatched. And it’s this confidence that can lead to you passing the NPTE! 

Confidence and Passing the NPTE

How do you think I was able to get a perfect score on the exam? Of course I studied and learned the strategies for taking standardized tests that I would later use to develop the PT Hustle but without a doubt, me passing the NPTE was down to confidence. You too can elevate your level of self-confidence by doing affirmations in the morning, listening to positive podcasts , and reading the right kinds of books. Additionally, think about getting in some good exercise regularly to feed your body as well as your mind.

It may be hard to believe but standardized testing is more about mentality than memorization. A confident student is a formidable foe to any interview or exam. I know it’s tough to think that this is really the recipe for success in passing the NPTE but take it from someone who knows. The days of you saying you are not ready for the NPTE are behind you. These are now the days of saying the NPTE is not ready for you!

I know you’re a winner, and winners exude ultimate confidence. If you lacked it before, let this be the beginning of a new era in your life, the era where you see things start to come together, starting with passing the NPTE!

Stand firm and believe in yourself, then set big goals and go accomplish all of them. I started the PT Hustle to help you dominate the NPTE and I’ll be there with you throughout the journey to help you keep believing in yourself!