How To Gain Self-Confidence Without Breaking The Bank
Gaining self-confidence is a goal that many people set for themselves and not many achieve. However, if you are prepared to take some steps to get there, it does not need to be expensive. First of all, you want to know your own value, so know what you're worth on the job market and then follow these tips!
1) Dress in clothes that make you feel like an empowered person. A key part of gaining confidence is the feeling or appearance that others have respect for your opinions and accomplishments. So wear clothes that help create this feeling such as suits or dresses; they signal power and authority. They also make you feel confident.
2) Put yourself in situations where you feel comfortable and powerful. This can include projects that are new to you, such as business meetings, but also include areas such as the gym. A good way to show others that you have confidence is to work out and then talk about it with other people. You will increase your self-esteem when people see how excited you are about the experience.
3) Here's another key point: practice "saying yes." We all want to be heard, but it's also a great way to get out of our comfort zone and meet new people. When you practice saying yes, you're likely to have more things in common. People tend to bond over things they have in common, which is a great way to gain self-confidence.
4) Try new activities that are challenging and new to you. If you exercise, work or just meet new people and act as if you own the world, people will assume that's how you're supposed to feel. By acting as if it's normal for you to be confident when speaking with others about your work or hobbies, for example, then it will start feeling natural and easy for you.
5) Turn off the TV/Internet and go outside. Exposing yourself to new people, new scenery, and new experiences will make you feel excited, powerful, and confident. You are allowing yourself to be open to learn new things. You're telling your brain that you're open for anything and ready for whatever comes your way. The more exposure you give it to the world around you, the happier you'll feel about who you are.
6) Another key point: surround yourself with positive people who want to see you succeed. People who want to see others better themselves are an invaluable resource if they can help guide your progress forward into a life of self-confidence. So surround yourself with people who want to see you succeed, and watch your confidence level soar!
7) Read books that make you feel popular and good about yourself. There are plenty of them available with great titles such as "How To Win Friends and Influence People", "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", and "Think And Grow Rich". The key is to use what you learn from these books to help make you more confident. You'll not only learn how to improve yourself; but you'll end up feeling much better about yourself than before.
8) Find a hobby that makes you feel good about yourself. This can include something you do at the gym, like going for a run or lifting weights. It can also mean something you do outside, like taking your dog for a walk or playing with a friend's pet. You might even consider learning new skills, like becoming an expert at poker. The key is to find some way to enjoy yourself and work hard at it in order to feel good about yourself and your life; you'll naturally gain confidence from these activities.
You'll be amazed how easy it is to feel confident when you focus on these points and put them into action!
9) Study successful people so you know what they have done and how they did it. You won't be good at everything and you might not have the talent that they had, but you'll still be able to learn and adopt their strategies.
10) Use your energy in a positive way. The key is to focus on what makes you feel good about yourself that day so that it will happen again. Make a list of your accomplishments or goals for the week and put them in front of you every time you feel like giving up. You can even make an award for yourself for the best accomplishment or accomplishment of the week! It'll keep your energy levels up and will help propel you toward gaining self-confidence when it's needed!
11) Choose friends who are friends with confidence. The people in your life who make you feel good about yourself are the ones you should hang out with. Your friends will help you gain confidence and they'll be a great source of support. They'll not only be able to help you with your confidence, but they'll also know that helping you is an important part of their own self-confidence growth.
12) Keep a journal or notebook nearby so that whenever a negative thought comes up, it's easy to write it down and change the negative thought into a positive one. An example might be something like "I can do this" or "I'm good at (whatever).
13) Think about what you like about yourself and then think of a way to show it to others! It's actually easier than you think because most people are good at something; whether it's reading, writing, speaking or something else. You just have to find someone who is willing to be your sounding board. This will give you an opportunity to practice your new-found confidence in front of someone who wants you to succeed!
14) Whenever you feel down on yourself or feel like giving up; ask yourself "What did I do right today?" Then write down all the things that make you feel good about yourself. Eventually you'll learn to do this on autopilot in your head and you won't even have to think about it.
15) Spend quality time with yourself. Set aside an hour a day just for you so that you don't feel like the world is crushing down on you, or the weight of all the people who judge you! You deserve a break! When we're happy with ourselves, we're much more likely to want to improve ourselves and become better people. By spending quality time with yourself, it's not only good for your self-esteem; but also makes life easier by increasing self-confidence.
16) Learn from others. The key to self-confidence is to gain knowledge about yourself, others and the world around you so that you can better adjust yourself within your own life and the world. When we are faced with a new person, situation or experience, it's easier to be confident with it because we know how to deal with it already. It's also a great way to get over fear of failure because you'll know exactly how and when to give yourself a pat on the back!
17) Never forget who you are and what makes you unique! We sometimes tend to forget our strengths in an attempt to fit in with everybody else.
Conclusion
There's no doubt about it; gaining self-confidence is a major hurdle to face when we feel like we're not good enough. It's easy to buy into media messages and other people's disappointments in us, but we can't let that keep us down! We've got to teach ourselves to be confident in ourselves and our own unique qualities.