5 Ways That Helped Me to Improve My Self-Confidence

Self-confidence is defined as a feeling of confidence in your abilities, qualities, and self-judgment. Confidence is important for your health and your psychological well-being. A healthy level of self-confidence can help you have a successful personal and professional life.

The benefits of self-confidence

Confidence can have many benefits — at home, at work, and in relationships. Here are some positive effects that self-esteem can have on your life.

Receptivity to new things. When you believe in yourself, you are more willing to try new things. Whether you are applying for a promotion or enrolling in a cooking class, believing in yourself is the crucial point to get rid of.

Better performance. When you feel confident about yourself, you are able to dedicate your skills to the job you want. Instead of wasting time and energy worrying that you are not good enough, you can devote your energy to your efforts. So, basically, you will have better performance when you feel confident.

Better durability. Self-confidence, or self-belief, can improve your resilience, or your ability to recover from any challenges or adversities you face in life.

Improved relationships. A healthy level of self-confidence can keep your relationships happy and healthy. One reason for this is because confident people tend to set clearer boundaries, prioritizing their own needs and feelings. A sense of self-worth not only affects how you feel about yourself but also helps you to understand and love others more. It also gives you the power to leave when you are not getting what you deserve.

Fortunately, there are things you can do to boost your confidence. Whether you lack confidence in a particular area of ​​your life or find it difficult to feel confident about anything, these strategies can help.

1. Stop comparing yourself to others

Whether you compare your appearance to that of your Facebook friends or compare your salary to your friend’s income, comparisons are not healthy. In fact, a study published in 2018 in Personality and Individual Differences found that there is a direct link between jealousy and how you feel about yourself.

The researchers found that people who compared themselves to others experienced jealousy. And the more they were jealous, the worse they felt for themselves. It can develop into a vicious circle.

Watch the moments when you compare your fortune, your possessions, your knowledge, your achievements, and your qualifications. Your self-confidence erodes when you think that others are better or have more. When you notice that you have started the comparisons, remind yourself that it is not helpful at all. Everyone runs their own race and life is not a competition.

Here are some tips on how to free yourself from the trap of comparison:

Be kind to others

When you give your best, you will not have so much tendency to compare yourself to others or focus on things that you lack. Helping others (altruism), especially those who are less fortunate than you, can give you a great insight into how lucky you really are in your life.

Count your blessings. If you envy someone else’s life, remind yourself of your strengths and successes. It would be a good idea to start writing an ongoing gratitude diary, which will help you focus on your own life and not the lives of others.

Recognize and avoid “enemies”

Are there specific people in your life who are constantly judging and comparing, and just highlighting your competitive side (and not in a good way)? It is not a bad idea to limit contact with these people or, if possible, to avoid them altogether.

Look for positive support. As you remove negative people from your life, it is also important to cultivate a social circle of people who will support and motivate you to be your best self and who will remind you of the good in you.

2. Pay attention to your body

It is difficult to feel good about yourself when you abuse your body. On the other hand, when you practice self-care, you know that you are doing something positive for your mind, body, and spirit, and you will automatically feel more confident. Here are some self-care tips associated with higher levels of self-confidence:

Diet

Proper nutrition comes with many benefits, including higher levels of self-confidence and self-esteem. When you feed your body with the right foods, you feel healthier, stronger, and more energetic, which in turn makes you feel better about yourself.

Exercise

Studies consistently show that exercise boosts self-confidence. A study published in 2016 in Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment showed that regular physical exercise improved participants’ body image.

Meditation. Meditation, which is more than a relaxation practice, can help boost self-confidence in a number of ways. First, it helps you recognize and accept yourself. Meditation also teaches you to stop the negative monologue and to disconnect from any inner chatter that affects your self-confidence.

Sleep. Restricted sleep can affect your emotions, while good quality sleep has been associated with positive traits such as optimism and self-esteem.

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3. Practice self-compassion

Self-compassion involves behaving kindly when you make a mistake, fail, or encounter an obstacle. It is a way to connect with yourself in a way that allows you to become more emotionally flexible, able to manage difficult emotions, and strengthen your relationship with yourself and others. Scholars have linked the ability to empathize with ourselves in a compassionate way to self-confidence.

A study published in 2009 in the Journal of Personality found that self-compassion contributes to stable self-confidence. Therefore, the next time you find yourself in a difficult situation, acknowledge that not being perfect or adequate is sometimes part of life. Do your best to guide these experiences with self-compassion.

4. Use the power of positive self-talk

Using positive self-talk can help you cultivate self-compassion, embrace self-doubt, and accept new challenges. On the other hand, negative self-talk can limit your abilities and lower your self-confidence by convincing your subconscious that “you can not get over it” or that something is “too difficult” and that “it is not worth trying. ».

The next time you start to think that you have no job to say in a meeting or that you are too naked to start exercising, remind yourself that your thoughts are not always right.

Below are some examples of how to trigger pessimistic self-talk and rearrange your thoughts to a more positive way of thinking:

Instead of saying to yourself, “I can’t do this” or “This is impossible,” try reminding yourself that “You can do it” or “I just have to try.”

Instead of saying to yourself, “I’m not doing anything right,” when you make a mistake, remind yourself, “I can do better next time,” or “At least I learned something.”

Instead of saying “you hate” public speaking, use softer words like “I do not like it” and remind yourself that “everyone has strengths and weaknesses”.

5. Accept self-doubt

Sometimes, people postpone things, such as asking someone out on a date or applying for a promotion, until they feel more confident. But often, the best way to gain confidence is simply by doing it. Try to do things that your brain tells you you can not do.

Practice dealing with your fears that come from a lack of self-confidence. If you are afraid that you will embarrass yourself or that you will drown them, do it anyway. Tell yourself that this is an experiment and see what happens.

You may find that being a little stressed or making a few mistakes is not as bad as you thought. And as you go along, you can gain more confidence in yourself, which in the end will help you avoid risks that hide significant negative consequences.

Embracing up to a point of self-doubt can, in fact, help you perform better. A 2010 study published in the Psychology of Sport and Exercise found that athletes who accepted their self-doubt outperformed athletes who were 100% confident.

This, of course, does not mean that you should not prepare or practice. If you have to give a public talk, practice in front of your friends and family to gain more confidence. But do not expect to feel 100% confident to move on. You may never succeed.

The necessary words for the end

We all face issues of self-confidence at some point. But if your self-esteem problems affect your professional and social life or education, you should consider seeking help from a mental health professional.

Sometimes, low self-esteem comes from a more serious issue, such as traumatic events in the past. Other times, it may be a symptom of a mental health problem.

It is also possible to have too much confidence. If you are overly confident in your abilities, you may not take action. Excessive confidence in your ability to do well on a test can prevent you from reading. Or the assumption that you do not need to practice for a presentation, could make you unprepared. It is important to have a healthy dose of confidence, which will help you to have the best possible performance.