Confidence Workshops

How to develop self confidence? If you lack self confidence you miss out on the many opportunities which come your way. This also isolates you from the crowd and you are not able to even chase your dreams. You are unable to make important decisions and you are less productive. You need to be aware that no one is born with a high level of self confidence. You need to work on developing this. This self confidence needs to be so strong that no circumstance can deflate it.

To help you in this journey of developing self confidence, we list a few tips.

1. Visualize the way you want to be:

The mind can achieve what it believes and conceives. This visualization is seeing yourself as the person you are proud to be. With low level of self confidence most of us have a perception of ourselves which is poor. You need to make that effort to see an image of yourself who excels in all the tasks undertaken.

2. Affirmations make a difference:

Affirmations are the perfect tool of bringing up your level of self confidence. You need to exchange how you see yourself as usually most of us behave in accordance to our self-image. Affirmations are uplifting and positive statements we say to ourselves. This can have the desired effect if said out loud.

3. Questioning the Inner Critic:

Approving oneself can work wonders. So, instead of constantly criticizing yourself, appreciate yourself and love the person you are. Your self confidence can take a beating if your inner critic is over-active and also inaccurate. Cognitive behavioral therapy can be helpful during this time. Find chances to reward and congratulate yourself for the smallest of achievements.

4. Set for a Win:

It is important to concentrate on your success and wipe out the failures and the negatives in your life to win over lack of confidence. It is important to ensure you set goals which are small and not impossible to achieve. With every win your level of self confidence can rise. List out all the achievements, however big or small they might be. Instead of the list of ‘to-do’ make a list of ‘I did’.

5. Self Care for Self confidence:

Self confidence is largely dependent on emotional, social, mental and physical health. Ensure you take good care of yourself so that there are no barriers and hurdles for your self confidence.

6. Equality Mentality:

Those who have low level of self confidence constantly see the others around them as better individuals in all ways. Ensure you see yourself as equal to the others around you. This shift to the equality mentality helps in boosting your self confidence to a large extent.

7. Creating Boundaries:

Make sure you are not a victim in any circumstances of life. You have your own definition of life and thus make sure you follow only this. It is important that people around you respect your personal boundaries. It is important to learn to stand up and say ‘NO’ when it is required. Developing self confidence is possible with a little effort put in. Make that effort and enjoy the success you have always dreamt of.

There is no one who can be confident all the time; you have your ‘good’ days and the ‘bad’ days. This might work in the negative when you are surrounded by people or have gone for a job interview. It is a known fact that most of us are not comfortable and confident in unfamiliar surroundings with strangers. Not feeling confident is fine; you need to ensure that you make an effort in appearing confident. Why not follow few tips so that you ‘appear’ confident in a crowd?

1. Standing Tall:

When standing in a crowd, ensure your spine is straight and your shoulders are pulled back. A good posture can help you in appearing confident. Those who slouch are viewed as uncertain or unconfident individuals.

2. Making Eye Contact:

Eye contact plays an important role to increase the perceived confidence. Without this you appear non-attentive and distracted. While talking it is important to look into the eyes of the recipient or if you are in a crowd you can alternate between different people. This also applies when someone else is talking to you. Pay attention to what is being said and stop looking around. Breaking eye contact makes you appear indecisive with a lack of confidence.

3. Speaking Clearly and Slowly:

You find people who are not confident speaking slowly in low tones. This leads to vulnerability which can lead to slipping up and making mistakes, causing more damage. Take your time when you are speaking and make sure you speak clearly and slowly. This makes you look confident and also helps you to use the right vocabulary.

4. Hands to be Visible:

Many of us are not aware that our hands say a lot about us. It is thus important to keep them not only visible but also active during a conversation. Folding your arms or stuffing your hands into your pockets are a clear sign of lack of confidence.

5. Improve your Handshake:

It is natural to be anxious when you meet someone new. You can distract yourself from nerves and project a good image if you make an effort to appear confident. The handshake is usually the first contact you have with anyone in a professional setting. The tone of the interaction can be set with a quality handshake. You need to ensure that you grasp the hand firmly but not tightly. The ‘right’ handshake can form an instant connection.

Appearing confident is definitely attractive and can take you places. This can also be helpful in developing the confidence you lack. This is said to be a quality of leaders and it shows the world that you are proud of what you are. Appearing confident indicates a level of maturity and thus is important in all the walks of life.

Appearing confident when you go for an interview can show that you are not desperate for the job. You need to ensure that you do not mix ‘confidence’ and ‘arrogance’ as these are two separate factors.

A definite attitude towards your abilities and skills is self-confidence. This means you are able to trust and accept yourself and have the basic knowledge and sense to control your life. You are in the know of your weaknesses and strengths, and possess a positive mind set. You are able to set realistic goals and expectations, handle criticism and communicate in an assertive manner. This self-confidence is a concept which is linked to the mental health. This includes going along with feeling.

Understanding Self-confidence:

Studies have proved that self-confidence is awareness of the time you go through struggles and have the strength to commit to taking action on this. This involves respecting one own self and having the courage to be honest about it. You need to be open about what you are and what you like. You need to believe in yourself and act on this belief. In short, self-confidence is having a positive feel about the person you are.

*Feeling worthy even with the imperfections and the ‘feel good’ factor you have is self-confidence.

*You need to value yourself for whoever you are, with all the mistakes.

*You need to be assertive and courageous enough and stand up for yourself in different types of circumstances.

*Besides knowing, you also need to accept yourself just the way you are, along with the weaknesses and strengths.

*Knowing that you are worthy of other’s respect and love.

Some Benefits of Self-confidence:

You are benefitted in more than one way when you have the required self-confidence. You are able to tackle the different challenges of life and live a fearless life with a positive outlook.

1. Happiness:

Those who have enough of self-confidence are definitely ‘happier’ people and they are content with their lives. There are no cribs and complaints. You are able to take on the world with determination and courage. This leads to better relationships, which means, happiness. Toxic relationships with bitterness and regrets can be one of the leading causes of unhappiness. Self confidence ensures quality work and you are well in touch with your surroundings. You can influence the people around you and at the same time control your behavior and emotions in a responsible manner. The ‘feel good’ factor you have leads to a positive attitude towards life.

2. Healthy Individuals:

Those with the right amount of self-confidence are definitely healthy individuals as the mental health is assured with this self-confidence. Children who have confidence in their abilities can perform well in academics and this carries on to the career and life. These children are also able to socialize better and have more friends as compared to those with a low self-confidence.

Self-Esteem:

Self-respect or self-worth is self-esteem and is definitely important in all aspects of life. Too little of this self-esteem can lead to depression. An individual feels defeated with lack of this self-respect. This can lead to individuals choosing toxic relationships, make bad choices in careers and fail to live up to their potential. This has a total negative effect on any individual.

Self esteem is considered to be personality trait. This is enduring and stable. This can involve different beliefs about one’s self. This plays an important role in the success in life.

Tips on improving Self-esteem:

Following the listed tips you can increase your self-esteem to a good level.

*Ensure you are surrounded with people who have a positive attitude towards life. It is important not to get influenced by negative talk of those around you. It is known that negative people have problems for every solution, while with the positive people it is vice versa.

*Start the day with positive affirmations to ensure your day goes off well. With these affirmations you can face the different challenges thrown at you with ease. You need to learn to refocus your thoughts on constructive happenings.

*Perfectionism can be a barrier for moving forward and completing different projects. This tends to paralyze you as you are scared of not being able to live up to the high standard. It is important to accept that nothing is ‘perfect’ and acknowledge when anything is good enough.

* Re-calculate the mistakes made and rectify these in a positive manner. Failures need to be tackled and not brooded over.

*Learn to be loving and kind as this can help you treat yourself also kindly.

*Take the required steps to build your self-confidence. Being confident helps you to value yourself and develop self-esteem.

Benefits of Self-esteem:

The benefits got from self-esteem tend to affect different areas of your life.

1. With enough of self-esteem you can be yourself and live life on your own terms and conditions. You are not answerable to anyone. Each individual has their own set of values, principals, goals and vision of life. With this self-esteem you are not dependent on the views of others and set up the goals in accordance to what you feel you need.

2. Accepting disagreement is a positive which is got with self-esteem. You might follow opinions of others and make mistakes, but with self-esteem you accept this and move forward, making the required changes. High self-esteem helps you understand that each individual has a right to opinion and you have the right to disagree with this.

3. Low self-esteem is a hindrance which gets you flustered or anxious when anyone challenges your opinion. With high self-esteem you are able to challenge the different opinions and make sure you are able to put your point forward. In other words, you can defend your opinion.

4. Self-esteem helps you understand that perfection is not necessary and not possible. You are able to identify how to do a specific job to the best of your abilities. You are ready to make the required changes for improving a specific job with the help of the feedback you get.

Self-confidence and self-esteem are two different things, but both are equally important for the mental health of any individual. Both of these are not only important but also beneficial to any individual for healthy living.