Do you find it challenging to go out in public or talk to people? Do you get nervous when meeting new people and become easily embarrassed?
If so, then you likely have low self-esteem. Low self-esteem can not only affect your personal life but also hold back your career as well.
But it’s not surprising that you have low self-esteem. Society conditions us to become insecure. And our parents don’t always know the best way to raise children with good mental health either.
Don’t worry, though! Anyone can become more confident with time and consistency.
Follow this guide below if you want a self-esteem makeover. Let us show you four ways on how to become more confident.
1. Improve Your Confidence By Changing Your Mindset
One of the reasons why we have low self-esteem is because we think negatively about ourselves. We don’t see our positive traits. Instead, we point out all the flaws that make us different from other people.
The truth is, everyone has good qualities — even if they appear bad on the surface. To change this mindset around, here’s what you can do:
Sit down by yourself for a few minutes and write down everything you like about yourself. Then list your negative thoughts next and reframe them into things you can work with or improve upon. For example, you can change “I’m clumsy” to “I should be more careful how I move around.”
If you’re having trouble thinking of good things about yourself, there are plenty of other people who can help. Ask your best friend or a family member what they like most about you and repeat that back to them. Or list out all the qualities that made someone fall in love with you.
And remember: everyone has flaws. It’s okay not to be perfect because nobody is entirely flawless anyway.
If you don’t see yourself as “good enough,” then look at how others view themselves too. The chances are, many people have problems they wish didn’t exist either but deal with them just fine.
Don’t feel pressured into being this ideal person if it makes you uncomfortable.
2. Boost Your Confidence By Setting Goals
Do you often feel like your life is out of control?
It may be hard to think clearly or make decisions when you’re anxious about how everything will turn out. This lack of self-control usually comes from not having any goals in place.
To become more confident, here’s what you can do:
Set some short and long-term goals for yourself. Make them achievable yet challenging. Write them down so they’ll motivate you towards achieving them within a specific timeframe too.
For example, if your goal is to lose weight, define how much weight by when with an action plan on how exactly how it’ll get done. Then reward yourself once it’s complete. You deserve something nice when you accomplish your goals.
Don’t expect yourself to become perfect overnight, though. Part of becoming more confident is learning how much work it takes to get there in the first place.
If you’re unsure how to set specific goals for yourself, look at areas where you want improvements. Then create an action plan out of that instead.
For example: if you feel like skipping the gym whenever possible, then start going regularly. Set a goal around getting up earlier or working out before bedtime every day after work.
When life gets overwhelming, remind yourself why these goals are important. Even when times get tough, stick with them until they become second nature again.
3. Work on Your Social Skills
This tip may sound a little odd. Are your social skills holding you back from becoming more confident?
Well, how do other people see you in social situations? Do they perceive you as shy and quiet or outgoing and bubbly?
If you’re not coming across how you intend to, here’s what you can do:
Instead of hiding away from social situations, make an effort to become more involved. Join a club or group where people share the same interests as yourself. Or, introduce yourself first on those awkward days when everyone is sitting around silent at work. You could have a few conversations with an AI character chat software in your spare time, as you won’t have to worry about any potential nerves that you might otherwise get in person.
Practice how to start up conversations with new people by asking open-ended questions about them — without being too nosy, of course. If they seem friendly but are protective over their private life, then don’t push for information that isn’t given naturally.
If you’re already good at making friends, then work on how to keep them. Put yourself in their shoes and think of how your social interactions can be better from both sides. It doesn’t have to always be a one-way street when it comes to giving back, so make sure that’s reciprocated.
4. Wear a Charming Smile
How emotionally close do you come across to other people? If your smile is a little lackluster or hardly ever seen, here’s what can help:
Smiling makes us feel better about ourselves and how we interact with the world. It also shows how approachable we are, which opens up new opportunities elsewhere in life.
A smile isn’t just important for how others perceive you, though — it’s how you view yourself too. You’ll start believing that smiling more leads to being happier on the whole rather than going through each day grumpy without any reason.
Don’t force a smile for the sake of it. Instead, remind yourself why you should be smiling in the first place. It can come from anything — how grateful you are about something or how much progress you’ve made throughout your day already.
But for you to smile more often, you need to be confident about your dental appearance as well. Are you happy about the appearance of your teeth? If not, cosmetic dentistry can help.
The good news is that cosmetic treatments are affordable nowadays. There’s no reason why you should hide away from smiling or laughing out loud.
Become More Confident in Yourself
To become more confident is not an easy task. It takes time, patience, and work to become a better you, but it’s worth the effort in the end.
By following these steps, you can become more self-confident and become a better version of yourself for it. Don’t expect to become perfect overnight, though. Part of becoming more confident is learning how much work it takes to get there in the first place.
We hope you become more confident after following this guide. For more interesting tips and guides, keep following our blog.
Iskra Banović is our seasoned Editor-in-Chief at Blufashion. She has been steering the website’s content and editorial direction since 2018. With a rich background in fashion design, Iskra’s expertise spans across fashion, interior design, beauty, lifestyle, travel, and culture.
