One of my favorite marketing tools has little to do with marketing and everything to do with building confidence and a positive mental attitude.

I know the phrase “positive mental attitude” triggers a gag reflex in some people, but it’s hard to deny that your attitude affects everything you do. So keeping a positive attitude can work wonders for your productivity – even if you have to keep it positive through corny little tricks like the one I’m about to describe.

I call it my warm fuzzy file, and it’s saved me on more than one occasion.

What’s a Warm Fuzzy File, and How Do I Get One?

Creating a warm fuzzy file is easy. Just make a new folder named “Warm Fuzzies,” and put it where you keep all your other computer files  Then, the next time someone sends emails you a compliment, or tweets something nice about you, save it to the folder. (You may need to create a new Word document for some, but it should only take you a minute or two.)

The warm fuzzy file is even more powerful if you print everything out and keep it somewhere you can reach it often, like one of those 59-cent folders with the three little tabs so you can attach pages. Then, the next time you get a nasty blog comment, a rejection letter, or some other negative feedback, flip open your warm fuzzy file and build yourself up.

What’s So Important About Warm Fuzzies?

Part of the reason so many women struggle with confidence is because they focus on criticism and downplay compliments. I’m not making a gender stereotype. It’s actually been documented that women give less merit to personal compliments than men.

We hear something nice about ourselves and think, “That person doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” We don’t give ourselves any credit for the awesome stuff we do – and that not only hurts our attitudes. It also hurts our chances for success.

Try the warm fuzzy file for just a month, and I guarantee it will become an essential part of your marketing strategy. If it doesn’t build your confidence up, it will still give you some great testimonials and bullet points for future sales letters and other marketing materials.