Two years ago, I was struggling with deep self-doubt.  I was trying to make a major career change and taking science courses at night at the local community college.  And I was failing miserably.  I just didn’t understand Chemistry – it was like I had accidentally walked into Chinese 101.  During one particularly bad class, I walked out of the classroom for a break.

On the way to the bathroom, negative thoughts swirled through my head. “You are so stupid, you are going to fail, you are wasting your money, you are never going to get out of your job, you’re such a dummy.”  I pushed open the door to the bathroom, relieved to see that it was empty.  At the sink, I washed my face and stared into the mirror.

Suddenly, I had an idea – why don’t I turn these negative thoughts into something positive?  I reached into my bag, pulled out a piece of paper, and scribbled, “You are beautiful.”  I tucked the paper into the edge of the mirror, stepped back, and took a picture.  I wondered who would find my note and what she would think.  And as I stared at the words, I realized that I wasn’t a failure – I was doing the best I could.  I was beautiful, too.

I blogged about my experience and how it changed me, and I asked others to participate.  And boy – did they participate!  Since launching OperationBeautiful.com, I’ve received more than 8,000 notes from girls, women, and even men from all over the world – an Operation Beautiful note was even posted on the South Pole.   Over time, Operation Beautiful has evolved to focus on all sorts of confidence issues, but the focus is on body image.

Our country is in the midst of a body image crisis.  The average girl goes on her first diet when she’s just 8 years old.   More than 2/3 of young women would rather be mean or stupid than be fat.   Men comprise 10% of anorexics and 40% of binge eaters.

People say that posting Operation Beautiful notes helps them feel more confident, happier, and appreciative of their bodies.  People who find the notes are touched, too.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that finding a simple Post-It changed someone’s life.  “I am bullied at school, but Operation Beautiful helps me hold my head high,” one middle school girl said.  “I keep jumping from one abusive relationship to the next.  Operation Beautiful is helping me slowly understand that there are good people out there who care about me,” a 20-something year old wrote in.  “I was headed to the bathroom to purge my lunch, as I always do, but I closed the stall and found an Operation Beautiful note telling me that I was good enough the way I was.  I didn’t vomit that day, and I haven’t since,” another girl said.

When people think about ‘changing their lives,’ we usually focus on the big things: new job, new partner, new body, new house.  But really, change is the result of many small efforts.  Change is about momentum.  The first step is to redirect your thoughts to be more kind and positive.   If you believe you are worth it, you are worth it.  If you believe you can do it, you will do it.

Can one Post-It note really change a life? I believe it can.

For more information, check out Operation Beautiful.  You can also follow Operation Beautiful on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook.   A book based on the site, Operation Beautiful: Transforming the Way You See Yourself One Post-It Note at a Time, features 125 of the best notes and stories ever received and tips on how to lead a happier, healthier life.