Confidence can be a choice!

I want to be more of me!

If someone asked you, “How confident are you on a scale from 1-10?”, I assume the majority vote would be a 6 or below; that’s my subjective view based on my cohorts.  The reason I state this is because many people have issues with confidence. But why? Is it based on looks and appearance, lack of confidence from within the soul, uncertainty, not recognising value, or they do not know how to be confident?

This blog post will cover some key aspects of confidence, including what is confidence, why is it important to be confident from within, and finally 6 mindset shifts/daily practices to help enhance confidence.

What is confidence?

Confidence is feeling sure of yourself and your abilities. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, it is “the quality of being certain of your abilities”.

Being able to make decisions with internal assurance that you are correct, and believing what you’re doing will benefit your life in some way, positions us to feel attractive and magnetic to others from within, which in turn, affects how you live your life. Confidence is a personality trait that is essential.

Confidence is an umbrella term used to describe a way of feeling, which when applied, enables you to live your life to its fullest. Without confidence, it is easy to feel defeated by small decisions. You may find yourself comparing your appearance to your peers, wishing you lived your life differently, hoping you had the same opportunities as them etc.

The deep-rooted fix for these negative emotions is to be confident. Not just getting your hair or makeup done, or buying a new outfit but to feel confident to get up in the morning and decide which way your day will go; confident to make important decisions that could affect your life forever.

Confidence is a way of living and adopting the mindset that being confident is a superpower can change your life.

Why is it important?

So why is being confident so important?  Confidence is one of those things that as a human it would be good to have. This doesn’t just mean making your hair look pretty every day or making sure your outfit is the best. It means having a positive mindset to speak confidently, walk confidently, and make decisions confidently, as well as enhancing your femininity or your masculinity.

Many people who lack confidence will confidently AVOID situations that make them uncomfortable, rather than embracing a new environment. People will also tend to second guess themselves and their choices and potentially never feel good enough.

This is extremely common among younger people, especially with social media being so prominent. Quite a lot of people have zero self-belief. For example, someone is doing a degree in university, but they only strive for a pass rather than a first, they can’t see themselves as ‘that’ person. It is crucial to steer clear of these traits.

If you lack confidence, it is more likely you will live a life you aren’t completely satisfied with.  Adopting a more positive and confident mindset will help overcome negative thoughts/ways of thinking.

Confidence can become deeply rooted if we make the decision to be confident and in order to do this we need to apply daily practice, growing our confidence in small steps initially and pushing boundaries further as we build momentum. Recognising that taking care of our needs is a crucial factor; if we don't who will? Imagine how you will feel when you start to notice the possibilities that confidence delivers.

So choose to step up.

Daily mindset shifts and practices to enhance and develop inner confidence.

Developing confidence takes time and effort. Here I have compiled a list of daily practices and mindset shifts that may help improve confidence from within.

1.      Embrace new opportunities and don’t shy away from them.

If given the opportunity to meet someone new, or explore a new place, perhaps, do not say no. Saying yes will allow you to move out of your comfort zone and adopt a mindset of curiosity, it will challenge you in exciting ways and bring you closer to achieving goals, which will facilitate confidence. Staying in your comfort zone will limit possibilities and in turn you will stay, stuck with low self-belief. Say yes!

2.      Live to please yourself and not others.

If you live to please others, you will never be true to yourself. Being true to yourself is what brings out your light within. Being true to your beliefs will always bring confidence.

3.      Others see you differently from how you see yourself.

This refers to struggling with confidence physically. You see yourself completely differently from others. Stop thinking that everyone has the same mindset as you. Everyone is different. If someone doesn’t like you, that’s okay too. Let it go. It only matters how you see yourself. Decide to be who you can be.

4.      Take yourself out.

Solo dates. These are a challenge that comes with an extremely rewarding prize. It is scary but you will be blessed with the most rewarding feeling of confidence afterwards. Take your book or laptop and go for a coffee or just go for a walk. Depend on yourself for happiness.

5.      Adopt a more open mindset.

Open your mind to new opportunities, new people, and new routines. Confident people tend to have a positive mindset, they are more open to anything new, without the worry of failing. It’s probable you must fail if you want to succeed.

6.      Focus on experience, rather than outcome.

Learn from experiences, and grow from failures. Ask yourself “What can I learn from this”. Take it as an opportunity to grow. Look out for people who are doing what you want to do and role model their behaviours, language patterns and how they carry themselves.

These mindset shifts/daily practices will help you develop your inner confidence over time. Confidence, in general, is a very useful trait to adopt. You will find yourself living a much more productive and happier lifestyle if you have faith in your actions and confidence in yourself.

Remember confidence can be a choice!

Megs blog

Perception | Potential | Performance