When you're self-confident, you trust your own judgment and abilities. It means having a strong sense of self-worth and self-belief.

1. Building Self-Confidence
PreparingYourself forSuccess!
Everyone admiresaself-confidentperson.We mayevenenvythemalittle!Self-confidentpeople seem
at ease withthemselvesandtheirwork.Theyinvite trustandinspire confidence inothers.These are
attractive characteristics.
It's not alwayseasytobe confidentinyourself,particularlyif you're naturallyself-critical,orif other
people putyoudown.Butthere are stepsthatyou can take to increase andmaintainyourself-
confidence.
Thisarticle,andthe video,above,explainswhatself-confidenceis,andwhyitmatters.It exploreshow
to believeinyourself,andhowtoprojectthisbelieftoothers,sothat youcan be happierandmore
effectiveinyourlife andwork.
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What isSelf-Confidence–and Why IsIt Important?
Self-confidenceisunderstandingthatyoutrustyourown judgmentandabilities,andthatyouvalue
yourself andfeel worthy,regardlessof anyimperfectionsorof what othersmaybelieveaboutyou.
Self-efficacyandself-esteemare sometimesusedinterchangeablywithself-confidence,buttheyare
subtlydifferent.
We gaina sense of self-efficacywhenwe see ourselves(andotherslike us) masteringskillsand
achievinggoals.Thisencouragesustobelieve that,if we learnandworkhardin a particulararea,we'll
succeed.It'sthistype of confidence thatleadspeopletoacceptdifficultchallengesandtokeepgoingin
the face of setbacks.
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Self-esteem isamore general sense thatwe can cope withwhat'sgoingon inour lives,andthatwe
have a right to be happy.

2. Also,self-esteemcomesinpartfromthe feelingthatthe people aroundusapprove of us.We may or
may notbe able tocontrol this,andif we experience alotof criticismor rejectionfromotherpeople,
our self-esteemcaneasilysufferunlesswe supportitinotherways.
Confidence andBehavior
Take a lookat the examplesinthe table below,whichcomparesconfidentbehaviorwithbehaviorthat's
associatedwithlowself-confidence.Whichthoughtsoractionsdoyourecognize inyourself andinthe
people aroundyou?
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Why Self-Confidence Matters
Self-confidenceisvital inalmosteveryaspectof ourlives,yetmanypeople struggletofindit.Sadly,this
can be a viciouscycle:peoplewholackself-confidence are lesslikelytoachieve the successthatcould
give themmore confidence.
For example,youmightnotwanttoback a projectthat's pitchedbysomeone who'svisiblynervous,
fumbling,orconstantlyapologizing.Onthe otherhand,youmightbe persuadedbysomeone who
speaksclearly,whoholds theirheadhigh,answersquestionswithassurance,andreadilyadmitswhen
theydon't knowsomething.
Confidentpeople inspire confidence inothers:theiraudience,theirco-workers,theirbosses,their
customers,andtheirfriends.Andgainingthe confidence of othersisone of the keywaysto succeed.In
the followingsectionswe'll seehowyoucando this.
How to AppearMore ConfidenttoOthers
You can showself-confidence inmanyways:inyourbehavior,yourbodylanguage,andinwhatyousay
and how yousay it.
Projectingapositive image tootherscanhelpyouto improve yourself-confidence.It'snotsimplya
matterof "fakingit."If youprojectwithconfidence,othersare more likelytorespondwell,andthis
positive feedbackwill helpyoutobelieve inyourself.
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BodyLanguage
Our article,BodyLanguage , exploresthe subjectinmore detail,buthere are some general pointersto
make youlook – and feel –more confident.
Adoptan openposture.Sitorstand uprightandplace your handsby yoursides.Avoidstandingwith
your handson yourhips,as thiscan communicate adesire todominate.Andbe sure notto slouch!
Keepyourheaduprightandlevel.Don'tleantoofar forwardor backward,as thiscan make you look
aggressive.Andif you're presenting,use openhandgestures.Spreadyourhandsapart,withyourpalms
facingslightlytowardyouraudience.Thisindicatesawillingnesstocommunicate andtoshare ideas.
Keepyourupperarms close toyour body.
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Face-to-Face Communication
People withlowself-confidenceoftenfinditdifficulttomake agood firstimpression,whetherthey're
meetingaclient, addressingameeting,orgivingapresentation.Youmaybe shy or unsure of yourself,
but youcan take immediatestepstomake yourselfappearmore confident.
Engagingwithpeople isimportant,somaintaineyecontactwhile youtalk.Thisshowsthatyou're
interestedinwhatthey're saying,andthatyou're takingan active part inthe conversation.Butbearin
mindany cultural considerationswhenitcomestobodylanguage andcommunication.
Don't fidgetorlookawaywhile the conversationcontinues,as thiscan make youappeardistractedor
anxious.
If shakinghandsis the usual greetinginyourworkplace,be firm.Nottoofirm, though,andavoidbeing
too upfront.Reachingforthe otherperson'swristorshoulderwithyourfree handisoftenseenasa way
of establishingdominance,andit'snotrecommendedforafirstmeeting.Avoidmakingthe encounter
awkward– or, worse,painful!

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MeetingShort-TermChallengestoYourSelf-Confidence
Eventhe most outwardlyconfidentpersoncanfindthemselvesdoubtingtheirabilitiessometimes.For
example,youmayhave atalentforcomingup withgreat ideasorsolutionsbutstruggle tomake your
voice heardinmeetings.Or,youmaysuddenlyfindyourself havingtoworkfromhome fora longperiod
of time,andfeel lostorisolatedwithoutthe companyof yourcolleagues.
To addressshort-termdipsinconfidence,firsttrytoidentifythe cause of the problem.
If you have difficultymaintaining confidence because of thingsyoufeelyoucan'tdo, itmakessense to
improve yourskills.Carryouta Personal SWOTAnalysis toidentifyyourstrengthsandweaknesses.
Thendraw up an actionplanto workon the areas where you're notso strong.
Otherpeople'sattitudesorbehaviormaycontribute toyourlackof confidence.If you're beingbullied,if
you're subjectedtomicroaggressionsinthe workplace,orif youfeel thatpeople are makingunfair
assumptionsaboutyou,youneedtocall thisbehavior out.
You can use the Situation-Behavior-ImpactFeedbackTool tomake it clearto the personresponsible
that theirbehaviorisharmful.If thatdoesn'twork,seekhelpfromyourline manager.If they're partof
the problem,speaktoHR. No-one shouldacceptworkplacebullying.
Practice assertiveness tobuildasense thatyouhave rightsand needsasan individual,andmake sure
that othersunderstandandrespectyourpersonal boundaries.Thiswill helptobuildthe psychological
safetyyouneedtodevelopself-confidence.
People withlowself-confidenceoftenfeel thattheydon'tdeservetobe happy,andthat theysomehow
deserve tobe treatedbadly.While the feelingmaybe true,the belief certainlyisnot!
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5. How Do You GainSelf-Confidence,andKeepIt?
Short-termactioncan fix immediate oracute issueswithyourself-confidence,butlonger-term
confidence-buildingneedsmore fundamental action.Thiscaninvolveintroducingchangestoyour
lifestyle andmakingrobustplansforthe future.
BuildingConfidentHabits
To builda strongsense of self-esteem,andthe confidence thatdevelopsfromit,aimtodevelopgood
habits(andto breakbad ones!).
Look afteryourphysical andmental health:regularexercise canimprove both.Make sure thatyou're
gettingenoughsleepandeatingproperly.Notdoingsocan leadtofeelingbadinyourself ,andlikely
aboutyourself.
Workingon yourpersonal branding canalso have a positive impactonyourself-confidence.If youcan
projecta positive image of yourauthenticself,you'lllikelystarttoreceive the positivefeedbackthat's
so importanttoyour self-confidence.
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Key Points
Whenyou're self-confident,youtrustyourownjudgmentandabilities.Itmeanshavingastrongsense
of self-worthandself-belief.
You can take immediate stepstoprojectgreaterself-confidence inthe wayyoubehave,andhow you
approach otherpeople.Youcanthendeveloptheseshort-termstrategiesintowaystobuildand
maintainself-confidence forthe longerterm.
Boostingyourconfidence meansdevelopinggoodhabitsthatwill improve yourself-esteem, whatever
otherpeople thinkof you.Feelinggoodaboutyourpastachievements,andsettingyourself achievable
goalsfor the future,helpsyoutobuildandmaintainthatconfidence.