Confidence is the difference between feeling unstoppable and feeling unable. Self-confidence is your perception of yourself, either positive or negative. It depends on a combination of good physical, emotional, and social health factors.
Being self-confident helps you perform better, project yourself, and achieve goals that you thought were unattainable. There are many factors that can affect your self-confidence at any stage of life, but there are two main ways to build it back:
1. PHYSICAL
2. MENTAL
PHYSICAL
These deal with appearance and motion factors that boost self-confidence
Dress Well:
Dress as you would like to be addressed – One of the biggest boosts in confidence is your outer appearance. People show affinity to people who look good, and looking good gives you the feeling that you could go anywhere, meet anyone, and be anyone. It mustn’t be just clothes, a nice shave, a different hair or a piece of jewellery could do the trick. Also, always smile at yourself in the mirror.
Good Carriage:
Your carriage tells your story – When you are down, it is natural to walk slowly with bent shoulders. That is a wrong image to project when you are building confidence. Energetic movement shows purpose and confidence, lethargic movement shows disinterest. The way you approach someone, shake hands, and make eye contact tells the person as much about your self-confidence as it does boost yours.
Work Out/Self Care:
Building your physical strength builds your mental strength – There is a tendency to feel insecure and unattractive when you are out of shape. When you work out, you not only build your physical appearance but also become energized and the feeling of achievement starts to boost your self-confidence. The discipline involved also gives you good momentum that builds up a positive mentality.
Help/Compliment Others:
Do good, Feel good – There is this boost in self-belief when you help someone. Their gratitude and joy rub off on you. It helps you remember that you have great ability and you feel grateful for that. When you help others, you focus on your strengths over your weakness and you grow your self-confidence automatically.
Sit In The Front/Speak Up:
Your voice is your strength – There is this tendency for shy people to sit on the periphery, or to come in and leave unnoticed. That is not helpful. When you sit in front, or speak up, people take attention, and in the midst of that attention, your opinions are heard. You become more relevant and take conscious, positive decisions. Over time, adaptability makes you more confident in yourself.
MENTAL
These deal with attitudinal and inbuilt reprogramming of the mind.
Positive Visualization:
What the mind can conceive and believe it can achieve – Visualization is seeing an image of yourself. When your self-confidence is low, you tend to see an unworthy version. Changing that perception constantly to project an excellent, self –confident person who achieves his/her goals is the first step to build up a strong mindset.
Identify Your Negative Thoughts/Fears:
Negative thoughts drain positive energy – The fear of failure is a morale killer. Negative thoughts like “I can’t”, “It’s not possible”, “What if I fail”, are pessimism that eat your confidence. Identify your fears and insecurities, once you have identified them take meaningful steps on how to get over and ensure you do not go back to them.
Use Positive Affirmation/Maintain Positive Network:
I can, if I want to – Positive affirmation reprograms your mind to believe in your abilities. “I can”, “I will”, “I am strong”. Small subtle conscious affirmation and self-encouragement snippets gradually develop into full-blown sub-conscious & self-motivation. When you are motivated to achieve something, your self-confidence grows alongside. Also, it is great to meet people who share encouragement and not despair. Iron, they say, sharpens iron.
Take Pride in Yourself and What You Have Achieved:
Everyone is great at something – You have this talent, skill, or ability that you know you are good at; don’t push it to the background. Always think of the things that make your personality great, from sense of humor, compassion, passion, or orderliness. Take pride in little things that you can do or that you have achieved and gradually you will trust yourself more.
Set Yourself Up To Win:
Every win, is a building block to a great estate- Winning is great, no matter how small. As you build yourself, set smaller goals that you reach on your way to a bigger goal. Your idea being accepted or learning something new is a goal too. When you build a stream of success, you become more confident and can then push for the big goals.
Finally, it is good to note that self-confidence is not something that just happens to you, it is a continuous process that has no overdose (Cockiness is not self-confidence, it is arrogance). Self-confidence is a habit that is entirely under your control and has no specific dosage. Your choice, your reach.