5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO BUILD SELF CONFIDENCE
Here are 5 things you can do to slowly and steadily build confidence for a successful future:
1. Practice and prepare
Knowledge makes you naturally more confident as it reduces the scope of getting blindsided. It is only with regular practice and dedication to one single thing that you’re able to achieve the knowledge you need. From job interviews to your art, you need to prepare yourself through practice.
Regular practice will help you know more and feel more prepared. When you’re more prepared, you’ll naturally feel more confident.
2. Focus on small goals
You can use your journal or get yourself a daily/weekly planner to write small goals and see them through. It could range from being able to wake up 30 minutes earlier in the morning to incorporate a 30-minute evening walk in your daily routine. Ensure that your goals are achievable. Being able to tick them off your list will motivate you and act as an incentive to aim for the bigger goals in life. Eventually, you’ll feel more confident to pursue your dreams.
3. Push away negative thoughts
There are so many times that we give in to our negative thought process and stop ourselves from doing what we really want to do. The truth is that negative thinking chips away at our confidence. This lack of confidence starts to reflect in our personal and professional spaces, conduct and choices. You see, negative thoughts are definitely common but you have to ensure you don’t act on them and push them away as soon as possible. This will go a long way in building confidence.
4. Don’t compare yourself to others
Ever felt envious after scrolling through your social media? It is so easy to feel like you’re not doing enough while people you know are living the exact life they want. But, comparing yourself to others won’t just make you waste time but also make you feel less confident.
A study published in Personality and Individual Differences noted that being jealous can result in an erosion of self-image. Everyone has their own journey and you don’t know someone’s whole life story. By thinking that you’re less capable or less equipped to follow your dreams, you’re only hurting your confidence. Concentrate only on yourself and trust your capability to build the life you want.
5. Forgive yourself
See, we all do things we’re not proud of and making mistakes actually contributes to our learning process. Then why is it that we find it so hard to practice some self-compassion? Understand that you will have to learn to forgive yourself in order to build confidence.
Acknowledge that you’re only human and that you will make mistakes and fall down once in a while. It is how you get back on track again that will be a true testament of your resilience. You will be able to be resilient only if you’re confident in yourself. In fact, a study published in the Journal of Personality notes that practising self-compassion can truly contribute to self-confidence.
