Self-confidence is a skill that you nourish and train; it is not something you gain overnight. Some people have a big amount of self-confidence naturally, and it’ll show in how they behave and handle some situations. However, some people go through a trauma or bad experiences that take a toll on their self-confidence. Self confidence is an important trait of success, as it pushes you to be your best self.
1. Shut down negative thoughts
Shut down negative thoughts
It’s time you stop that negative thought in your head. Whenever you have negative thought, stop it in it’s track and instead say, you can, and sooner or later, you’ll start believing it. Negative thoughts demotivates you from doing your best, so next time any negative thoughts pop in your head, try to look in a positive direction.
2. Surround yourself with positivity
Surround yourself with positivity
It’s not enough to have positive thoughts, people around you also play a major role in boosting your confidence. Surround yourself with people who push you towards what you want in life. Your family, and friends can make a huge difference about how you feel about yourself. So, it’s time to clean your contacts list.
3. Learn how to say “NO”
Learn how to say NO
Don’t be bullied into doing something that you’re uncomfortable with and goes beyond your boundaries. Be assertive and don’t be afraid to say no when you need to.
You may think that you’re being mean or don’t want to upset someone, you’ll come up with a list of excuses as to why you should say yes to someone. Saying yes will only hurt yourself and your confidence, no one else.
4. Change how you see yourself
Change how you see yourself
We behave and feel according to our self-image. So if you feel like you’re not physically attractive, you’ll avoid looking in mirrors. Changing how you see yourself and working on your eye contact, speech and body language will make you more confident in yourself.
Find out what are the things in your image you don’t like and work on them, you can even try focusing on the things you do like about your self-image and saying them out loud to yourself until you believe it and feel good about it. Be confident in the way you carry yourself.
5. You are your meanest critic
You are your meanest critic
Sometimes people’s criticism can be harsh, but your criticism of yourself can be the hardest. We all make mistakes. So instead of beating yourself down, start praising your strengths instead.
Write down all your strengths and remind yourself of them each time you’re going to criticize yourself negatively. Stop calling yourself a loser or a failure because each time you do, it’s another blow to your confidence.
6. Love Yourself
Love yourself
How you feel about yourself is important to how you treat yourself. Caring for your health and emotions is the perfect blend of loving yourself. When you love your body and look after it, you’ll have more confident in yourself.
Care for yourself by improving your sleeping habits, get more hours of sleep at night or exercise more, even if it’s just a walk or maybe even pick up a sport to increase your energy and reduce stress. Eating healthy meals and caring for your hygiene are also signs of loving yourself.