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Confidence

Self-confidence is about believing in you. Confidence cannot be learnt like a set of rules; it is a state of mind. It takes practise, knowledge and talking to others seeing what helps them to be confident. Confidence comes from a feeling of well-being, accepting your body and mind and believing in your own abilities, skills and experience.

Ways to boost your confidence

  • Notice when you are thinking negatively and try to change this.
  • Stop comparing yourself to others – everyone is different, if you keep comparing yourself to others you will find things missing from you and your life.
  • Try positive self-talk – think about things you do well and talk yourself up not down.
  • Try to think of a time you did something new and succeeded.
  • Think about qualities that have helped you in life.
  • Think about what makes you happy and remember to do these things.
  • Do things you know you are good at.
  • Try something new like a new sport or a new interest.
  • Accept compliments when people give them to you.

Positive thought can have a very powerful effect on improving self-confidence.

Learn to recondition your brain by.

  • Knowing your strength and weaknesses – write a list of what you are good at and things you would like to improve, discuss your list with family and friends they may even help add to your list. Celebrate and develop your strengths and find ways to improve your weaknesses.
  • We all make mistakes – don’t think of your mistakes as negatives but rather as learning opportunities
  • Accept compliments and compliment yourself – when you receive a compliment say thank you and ask them for more details about exactly what they like. Recognise your own achievements by rewarding yourself and telling family and friends about it
  • Use criticism as a learning experience – everyone sees the world differently criticism is only someone else’s opinion be assertive when given the criticism, don’t be defensive or let it lower your self-esteem. Listen to the criticism and understand what is exactly being said. Use criticism as a way to learn and improve
  • Stay cheerful and have a positive outlook on life – only complain or criticise when necessary and when you do, do it in a constructive way. Offer other compliments and congratulate them on their success.

Building self confidence

  • The first step to building your confidence is where you are now and where you want to be. Get yourself in the right mind set and commit yourself to starting and staying with it.
  • Think about your life so far, list things you have achieved maybe you got a good mark on a test or got the part in the school play. Put the list somewhere safe where you can look as it every week or as often as you like and see what you have achieved you can even add to it every time you achieve something new.
  • Start to manage your mind. Learn to take and defeat the negative self-talks which can lower your self-confidence.
  • The last step is to make a clear understanding with yourself that you are committed to staying focus on building your self-confidence and that you will do all it takes to achieve it.

Change your body language and image

Making small changes to your body language and image can help improve your confidence. This gives others the impression you are a confident person.

  • Smiling will not only make you feel better but will make others feel more comfortable around you. Try to think of someone with a huge smile, you are envisioning someone who is self-confident.
  • Look at the person you are talking to – not looking down – keeping eye contact shows confidence. Speak slowly and clearly, people who speak more slowly and clearly feel and appear to be more confident. The added bonus is that you will actually understand what they are saying.
  • Go the extra mile – style your hair, have a shave and dress nicely. Not only will this make you feel better about yourself but others are more likely to think you are successful and confident as well. A great tip is when you buy a new outfit wear it around the house to get past any wardrobe malfunctions before heading out.
Maintain a positive support network – connect to those who you feel most comfortable with such as family or friends. Having the connection will help you feel more positive and allow you to stay away from people are negative and make you feel bad.
Strive for balance – like everything in life self-confidence is about maintaining balance. Too little self-confidence can keep you from your goals and feeling good about yourself. It is important to be realistic – you do not want to underestimate the time and effort to achieving goals.
Sleep – getting enough sleep every night can help you look and feel better. It can help you have a more positive attitude and energy. Plenty of sleep also helps you moderate your emotions and deal with stress more effectively.

Remember confidence starts with you, you have the power to change it

JESSICA CUTHBERTON CYP VOLUNTEER

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