“Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy.” Norman Vincent Peale
Don’t we all have those moments of insecurities? Everyone needs a confidence boost now and again.
It’s totally understandable to feel a bit awkward when the only person you know at the party is the host or have that anxious feeling when you have to give that speech or big talk.
However, sometimes our lack of confidence is not limited to our circumstances, it goes much deeper into how we feel about ourselves. It’s so easy for fear and self-doubt to take over as we go about our day, often we’re not even aware of it. If this is you, being able to boost your confidence may be the missing key to achieving your biggest dreams.
How is the need to boost your confidence tied to achieving your dreams? Well, if you lack self-confidence you lack the self-discipline necessary to pursue your dreams. You see it’s nearly impossible to maintain the motivation and do the hard work if you don’t believe in yourself.
Low self-esteem or lack of confidence causes us to follow the pack. On the other hand, it takes courage to break the mold and live differently, which in turn requires confidence in you!
7 Guaranteed actions to Boost Your Confidence
Let me ask you a question, do you want to be someone who pursues what they want despite what others say?
If so, it starts by believing in yourself! So let’s boost your confidence and go after those dreams.
1.Boost Your Confidence by Making Self-Care a Priority
People who value themselves take care of themselves, it’s just that simple. As you take the time to make sure you’re eating well balanced nutritious meals, getting some form of regular exercise, and practicing basic self-care you’ll naturally begin to appreciate your worth.
We all know that time is valuable. As we spend some of this valuable commodity on ourselves we see our own value grow. Add to that the fact that we all feel more confident when we look our best.
To be totally honest, my dream Sunday involves coming home from church and changing into my favorite sweat pants, a comfy T-shirt, removing my make-up, and putting my hair in a messy bun. However, if this were my normal everyday attire it would not take long for me to begin to feel quite frumpy and find myself esteem lowering.
Do you see how important self-care is to boost your confidence? Take some time to put on some make-up, or if you don’t wear make-up, fixing your hair, or invest in a couple of cute capsule pieces for your wardrobe. You can find more self-care ideas here.
I promise these simple self-care actions will boost your confidence.
2. Get To Know Yourself
When it comes to developing self-confidence, we’re our own biggest enemy. As humans, we have a natural tendency to focus on our weaknesses all the while having very little idea of’ what our strengths are.
But the truth is, every one of us has our own unique strengths and weaknesses. Celebrating your personal strengths is a great way to boost your confidence.
If you’re not sure what your strengths are, here is a super simple exercise to help you get to know yourself a little better:
List five things that you do well and five things that you’d like to do well.
This simple exercise brings into focus at least five of your strengths, the things you already do well. Because you are focusing on what you do well, you’re already thinking more positively about yourself!!
Now by listing five things you would like to do well, you’re already taking on a “CAN DO” attitude! Deep down you know you can do these things or you wouldn’t have listed them.
Keep concentrating on your strengths and you will see your confidence skyrocket.
3. Talk to Yourself
3. Talk to YourselfWe build our feelings of confidence or our feelings of insecurity by how we think. Insecurities take over when we think we’re not capable.
However, you can choose to think differently. It doesn’t matter if it’s fear, doubt, or overwhelm that’s holding you back. You can choose to think positively.
It’s up to YOU, make the choice to decide that YOU ARE IMPORTANT!
Once you start acknowledging your worth remind yourself of this truth every single day.
Some of the things I like to remind myself of when I’m feeling down: I am created in the image of God; That I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139) and Romans 8:31; If God is for us who can be against us.
By speaking these truths I instantly build my self-confidence.
Here is a fun list of affirmations from Essential Life Skills.
4. To Boost Your Confidence Focus on Solutions Not Problems
A simple truth: people who succeed focus on the progress they’ve made not the challenges they face. Do you look at how hard or difficult it is to form a new habit? Or do you see how much you’ve accomplished?
This simple mindset shift is key to making a habit stick. Look at what you have accomplished not how far you have to go.
One of my favorite exercises, when I am trying to find a solution to a problem, is to write the problem(s) on one side of a piece of paper and then on the other side list all possible solutions. Once I see the possible solutions written out, I have the confidence to start working on them. I am no longer seeing just the problem.
Get to work on those solutions and watch your confidence soar.
5. Know Your Principals and Live By Them
Insecurity is just another word for unsure. When you know exactly what your values are and have a commitment to live by them this creates an automatic sense of confidence.
You decide these are my priorities and I am going to be true to them. If you’re not sure what your core values are, I want to encourage you to start thinking about it. What are the things that you want to define your life? Get a pen and paper and start brainstorming.
The reason this is so important is that when you come across circumstances that put your core values into play, you will have the confidence to stand firm.
Being true to your values is a guaranteed way to boost your confidence.
6. Be Kind and Generous
6. Be Kind and GenerousI had been at my church for only a month or so when they announced the women’s retreat. I felt really uncomfortable going because at that point I had met like one person.
The Pastors wife came up to me and asked if I was planning on attending. When I told her no, and the reason why she went out of her way to show me kindness. She offered to drive me and made sure I was rooming with her.
Not only was this woman very kind to me, but I also watched her spend the entire weekend ministering to other women. She was completely other-focused.
I, on the other hand, was self-focused being primarily concerned with how uncomfortable I felt. Through this amazing woman’s example, I learned to be other-focused. When I did the most unexpected thing happened — my confidence rose.
My goal became about others rather than myself. I had to work past my insecurities and talk to other people. You see without talking to others you will never learn how you can help them.
Spend some time really focusing on being kind and generous to others, in the end, you will be blessed as you increase in confidence.
7. Talk to Strangers
Trust me, I know this can be super hard, I am a major introvert. But I’m not talking about having giant lengthy conversations.
Ask the grocery clerk how she’s doing. Strike up a small conversation about a great deal you found or ask if she’s been busy all day. Something simple is all it takes.
Even paying a genuine compliment to a stranger can do a lot to build your own confidence. By paying a compliment to a stranger you make them feel good, which in turn makes you feel good and boosts your confidence.
As you push yourself outside of your comfort zone, it gets easier and easier to talk to someone you don’t know and watch your confidence soar.
Confidence is key to being able to achieve those things that really matter to you. If you find yourself doubting how incredibly amazing and capable you are, start implementing these seven steps today!
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