Take Your Confidence Up A Notch

Does walking into a room full of strangers scare the hell out of you? Do you get jittery about trying something new? If you’re having a bit of a confidence crisis it can affect everything you do – from your performance at work, to your social life. Feeling self conscious can make even the smallest of things seem like a mighty big deal but being shy shouldn’t hold you back.

“A lack of confidence often stems from the belief that you’re not good enough,” explains performance coach Margaret Mara. “The key is to remember that you’re far better than you think you are.”

Learn to have a kinder voice and remind yourself of your talents and skills more often

As people, we’re kinda inclined to think the worst of ourselves. As much as we see how deadly our pals are, sometimes we don’t appreciate all the awesomeness that we’ve got to offer too, and over time that can lead to a lack of self belief and a killer for our confidence.

The trick, says Margaret, is to watch your self talk and do a little bit of looking out for number one. “What if you could find an alternative way to speak to yourself,” she asks. “Learn to have a kinder voice and remind yourself of your talents and skills more often.” So maybe you’re a deadly sprinter or brill at cheering people up. Tap into the things you like about you and remember them when you’re not feeling so fierce.

Next up, Margaret recommends you break out of your comfort zone by doing something that really scares you. Things like starting a new course or going to a cafe alone. When you realise that you actually can do something that you thought you couldn’t, it’ll give you a major confidence boost. The result? “You’ll begin to smash through the beliefs that have held you back and start to have confidence in yourself.

“This is about building your confidence step by step so you need to stop comparing yourself to everyone else. It doesn’t matter about them,” Margaret explains. So, who cares if Sally from down the road is totally fearless? This is about you. If you’re feeling insecure, it can feel a bit like the whole world is watching your every move, but chances are most people – yes, even the ones who look like they’ve got it together – are too worried about their own imperfections to notice what you’re doing.

Pic credit: New Look

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