How to Be More Confident

Self-assurance (Confidence) is a sense of trust in one's own abilities, qualities, and judgment. According to research, confidence is important for physical and psychological well-being. Learn how to be more confident and reap the benefits of increased self-confidence.

What Exactly Is Self-Confidence?

Self-confidence can refer to a general sense of trust in one's ability to control one's life, or it can refer to a specific situation. For example, you may have high self-confidence in one area of expertise but lack confidence in others.

A healthy sense of self-confidence can help you achieve greater success in your personal and professional life. According to research, people who are more confident tend to perform better academically.

Studies have linked higher levels of self-confidence in athletes with increased motivation to practice their sport of choice. Your self-esteem influences how you present yourself to others.

How to Boost Your Confidence

Fortunately, there are several ways to boost your self-esteem. These nine confidence boosters can help you whether you lack confidence in one area or struggle to feel confident about anything.

Stop Making Comparisons to Others.

Do you compare your appearance to the people you follow on Instagram? Perhaps you compare your salary to that of a friend. According to social comparison theory, making comparisons is natural. However, it is unlikely to boost your self-esteem. It could have the opposite effect.

A 2018 study published in Personality and Individual Differences discovered a direct relationship between envy and how we perceive ourselves. Researchers discovered that when people compare themselves to others, they experience envy. And the more envious they are, the less they like themselves.

How do you boost your self-esteem when you notice you're making comparisons? First, remind yourself that doing so is counterproductive. Everyone is running their own race, and life is not a race.

If you're feeling envious of someone else's life, remember your own strengths and accomplishments. Keep a gratitude journal to help you remember the areas of your life where you have been blessed. This can assist you in focusing on your own life rather than the lives of others.

Positive People Should Surround You

Consider how you feel when you are with your friends. Do they make you feel better or worse? Are they always passing judgment on you, or do they accept you for who you are?

People you spend time with can have a greater impact on your thoughts and attitudes about yourself than you realize. So pay attention to how others affect you. If you feel bad about yourself after spending time with someone, it may be time to end such relationships.

Instead, surround yourself with people who genuinely care about you. Seek out people who are upbeat and can help you build your confidence. Positivity and self-assurance go hand in hand.

Take Care of Yourself

This confidence-boosting tip is based on the idea that it's difficult to feel good about yourself if you're abusing your body. When you practice self-care, you know you're doing something good for your mind, body, and spirit—and as a result, you'll naturally feel more confident.

The following self-care activities have been associated with higher levels of self-confidence:

Sleep: Sleep deprivation can have an impact on your emotions. In contrast, good quality sleep has been linked to positive personality traits such as optimism and self-esteem.

Diet: Eating healthy has numerous advantages, including increased confidence and self-esteem. When you feed your body nutrient-dense foods, you feel healthier, stronger, and more energized, which can lead to feelings of self-worth.

Exercise: Physical exercise has been shown in studies to increase self-confidence. A study, for example, discovered that regular physical activity improved participants' body image. They felt more confident as their body image improved.

Meditation: Meditation, which is more than just a relaxation technique, can help boost self-confidence in a variety of ways. For one thing, it assists you in recognizing and accepting yourself. Meditation also teaches you to stop negative self-talk and disconnect from unhelpful mental chatter that undermines your self-esteem.

Take Care of Yourself

When you make a mistake, fail, or experience a setback, self-compassion means treating oneself with kindness. It helps you become much more emotionally flexible and better navigate difficult emotions, improving your connection to yourself and others.

A study conducted found a link between self-compassion and self-confidence. So, when next you find yourself in a difficult situation, remember that being imperfect or falling short at times is a natural part of being human. Make an effort to navigate these experiences with compassion for yourself.

Use Positive Self-Affirmation

Self  criticism can limit your abilities and diminish your self-esteem by convincing your subconscious mind that you "can't handle" something or that it is "too difficult" and you "shouldn't even try.

 Positive Affirmation, on the other hand, can foster self-compassion and assist you in overcoming self-doubt and taking on new challenges.

When you start to feel like you have no business speaking up in a meeting or that you are too out of shape to exercise, remind oneself that ones thoughts aren't always correct. Then find a way to turn those thoughts around into more positive self-talk.

Here are a few examples of how to challenge pessimistic self-talk and redefine your thoughts into a more positive frame of mind, while also boosting your self-confidence:

I can't do it or It's impossible becomes I can do it or All I have to do is try.

I can't do it right is transformed into I'll do better next time or At least I learned something.

I despise public speaking, becomes I despise public speaking, and Everyone has strengths and weaknesses.

Understand When to Say No

While doing things you're good at can boost your confidence, it's also important to recognize situations that can cause it to plummet. Perhaps you notice that whenever you engage in a certain activity, you feel worse about yourself rather than better.

It's fine to say no to activities that sap your self-esteem. You certainly don't want to avoid doing anything that makes you uncomfortable, because discomfort is often a necessary part of the personal growth process. At the same time, there's nothing wrong with knowing and sticking to your boundaries.

Setting social and emotional boundaries allows you to feel psychologically safer. It can also make you feel more in command. Feeling in control of your life is a component of self-confidence. 16 Boundaries contribute to this sense of control.

When someone suggests doing something that you know will make you feel less confident, politely decline. You don't have to avoid that activity indefinitely. When you learn how to be more confident, you may feel strong enough to try it again without jeopardizing your self-esteem.

Set Specific Goals

Pursuing your goals often entails failing several times before figuring out what works. This may cause you to question whether you have what it takes to succeed. It may also leave you wondering how you can be more confident while still achieving your goals. Setting realistic goals is the solution.

Setting lofty goals and failing to meet them has been shown to erode confidence. Realistic goals, on the other hand, are attainable. And the more you achieve your objectives, the more confident you will be in yourself and your abilities.

Write down what you want to achieve in order to set goals for the future. After that, consider your chances of success. (Be truthful!) If the answer is slim to none, the goal may be overly ambitious. Reduce it to make it more realistic and achievable.

This may necessitate some research on your part. For example, if you want to lose weight, experts suggest losing one to 1 to 2 pounds per week for long-term, healthy weight loss. Knowing this allows you to set a goal that is in line with this guidance, which boosts your self-confidence when you achieve it.

Quick summary

Learning to be more confident can have a variety of beneficial impacts on your life. Self-confidence, in addition to making you feel better about yourself and your abilities, can strengthen your relationships and make you more tolerant to stress.