Confidence is a funny thing. We see other people doing amazing things with confidence. We start to think that they’re the most amazing people in the world, which can make us feel down. In reality they’re like the rest of us – normal human beings that doubt their own abilities from time to time. But what can we do to combat our own self-doubt?
The International Authority for Professional Coaching & Mentoring is the leading accreditation authority for professional coaches. Here, one of their accredited coaches, Ruby McGuire, offers YCB readers 5 ways to improve confidence.
1. Fake it ’til you make it
Think of someone that exudes the confidence you’d love to have. Notice what it is about them that comes across as confident – the qualities they possess and how they behave. What do they do and say that makes you think they are confident? Choose one of their qualities and ‘act as if’ you have that quality. Over time you’ll start to step into feeling more confident too.
2. Know that confidence is situational
You might make a mean spaghetti bolognese, therefore you’ll feel confident cooking for your friends. But if you turn that process into a Facebook live video, your confident culinary skills may become a distant memory. When you think about where your lack of confidence lies, you’ll often find that it’s related to a change in environment or an area where you need to build skills. Is it doing a certain task or in a particular place? Once you narrow down the specifics, you’ll be able to create a plan to develop your skills/behavior to boost your confidence!
3. Focus on your strengths
Write a list of all your strengths. If you’re not sure, ask the people who know you. If you don’t feel confident in doing something – like building a website for example – outsource it to someone that does. You can then focus on areas in your life that you excel at. This approach not only gets the job done quicker, but it also boosts your confidence in the process.
4. Stop comparing bananas to socks
It can be very easy to get into the habit of comparing yourself to others, or as Ruby calls it, comparing bananas to socks! Avoid comparing things that aren’t alike – the best person to compare yourself to is you! You should constantly strive to be the best version of you that you can be.
5. Choose to believe something better
When you’re feeling unsure and you don’t know how you are going to do ‘that thing’ – simply ask yourself this question: what could I believe right now to….? For example, you might find writing a challenge, therefore your reply to this question would be “I can write 100 words”, or “I can create an outline of the article I’m wanting to write”.
