Confidence: The Key to Unlocking Your Life
“The biggest difference I’ve noticed between successful people and unsuccessful people isn’t intelligence or opportunity or resources. It’s the belief that they can make their goals happen”- James Clear
By: Saniya
Having self-confidence is one of the most important skills to unlock your full potential and to lead to greater success. It’s important in every facet of your life: at school, in the workplace, and even in your personal relationships. Just believing in yourself can get you ahead in life. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. Unfortunately, it can also be a hard skill to cultivate, as there will always be bumps in the road that stifle your confidence. However, like everything in life, having self-confidence is just a skill that the more you practice, the better you will become.
Impacts of Self-confidence:
- Greater Motivation
By believing in yourself, it is also easier to believe that you can achieve your goals and dreams, no matter how impossible they may seem now.
2. Improved Relationships
By having self-confidence, you build new relationships with more ease while simultaneously strengthening older relationships. You are also probably less stressed and anxious about what a person thinks of you, which improves your performance abilities in a meeting or job interview.
3. Improved Resilience
It is easier to bounce back from tough or difficult circumstances or experiences. When you believe in yourself, you can also trust yourself to improve a certain situation. It will allow you to be in a better state to try again and again until you get it right.
4. Better Mental-Wellbeing
Higher levels of self-confidence are directly correlated with less stress and anxiety due to stronger self-esteem.
Building and Practicing Self-confidence:
- Don’t compare yourself to others
With the advent of social media and the internet, it can be easy to fall into the trap of comparing yourself to friends or celebrities. This cycle of comparison often reduces your own sense of self-worth when you feel envious of someone’s life. To combat this cycle, you can reduce your social media use, practice gratefulness, and actively remind yourself of your own blessings and successes in life.
2. Be okay with being imperfect
No one is perfect which is important to remember. However, often people put off doing something in fear that it won’t be the best. However, no one is going to be perfect on the first try, or even the 100th try, so don’t be afraid of embarrassing yourself or making a mistake. When you mess up, as everyone does, remind yourself that no one is perfect, and you’ll reach your goal with more practice.
3. Have Healthy Habits
Practicing exercising, eating healthy foods, meditating, and following a good sleep schedule all increase your mental wellbeing and performance abilities, and with it, your self-confidence. These activities are all aimed at improving yourself and can improve your self-confidence.
4. Fake It Till You Make It
By just faking your confidence in a situation that may cause stress or anxiety, others will see you as a confident individual, and you may actually feel confident in real life. Eventually, with enough practice, your self-confidence will be a well-practiced habit.
5. Encourage Yourself
Whenever you feel nervous or anxious, remind yourself that you can do this. Saying a positive affirmation is very helpful, and it can provide a boost to your self-confidence. Just be kind to yourself, and remember everyone makes mistakes.
