8 Ways to Build Confidence

C-O-N-F-I-D-E-N-C-E!

Have you ever struggled with self-confidence?

Do you apologize, even when there is nothing for you to apologize for?

Do you find yourself putting people down pretty often?

Are you slouching or look down in public?

If you answered yes, you can build yourself up and still create the confidence you want.

My Journey with Building Confidence

I found myself saying yes to these questions two years ago. I used to put people down, not to their faces, but I would be salty that others were so happy and doing so well. Now that I am satisfied with my self-esteem and confidence, I am pleased to see others do well and achieve great success because I am happy with where I am.

I am not perfect, and I still have things to work on. For example, I even apologize for no reason here and there, and I know that I need to focus on that more.

I have not always had the best confidence, and honestly, I believe self-confidence can continuously be improved.

I will be sharing seven tips I used to help build up my confidence in the last year and a half.

1. List your Strengths

Get a piece of paper and pen, take the time to write out your strengths. This is important because you are becoming aware of your abilities. Once you have written out all your strengths, place the list somewhere you will always see it. Whether that is on your work desk, on the bathroom mirror, or on the back of your bedroom door. This helps remind you of positive strengths about yourself and boost your self-esteem every day.

2. Surround Yourself with Positive People

Take the time to really think about the people you hang-out with.

Are they friends or family that build you up or bring you down?

Do they talk positively about other people when they are around you?

Or do they tend to gossip?

Someone bringing down always will hurt your self-esteem and confidence. Remove the people from your life that do this to you because you deserve better. When it comes to family, you shouldn't jump to removing them from your life. You can regulate how often you see that family member and address that you don't like what they are doing. If they don't respect how you want them to treat you, then, by all means, remove them.

Sometimes we don't realize that even being around a friend or family member who is negative towards themselves or everything can emotionally drain you. This can cause your self-esteem to stoop to their level. If this happens every once in a while, then find a way to cheer them up. If this is constant, recommend them to a therapist to help them find the underlying problems.

3. Get to Know your Authentic Self

This step takes time, so don't rush yourself in this process. This is just like you are dating someone new. Ask yourself these questions. It might be easier to write this down in a journal or on a piece of paper.

What do you like?

What don't you like?

What are you good at?

What do you like about others?

What motivates you?

Why do you do what you do?

What matters most to you?

You may really surprise yourself when you finish answering these questions. Taking the time to know ourselves better creates more room to let others into your heart and form a space for someone to add to you.

4. Address your Doubts

A great way to address any doubts you have is to start journaling. This can really help you realize what might be causing your doubts. The past may be a cause of your doubt. If that is true, then look at it, understand why it is there, then remove that memory.

When you start to worry about what others may think about what you say, remember that people aren't necessarily worried about what you do or not do.

Don't get stuck comparing yourself to others. This is a BIG one! When you start to compare yourself to others on social media or friends around you, then self-doubt starts to come up right behind you. A great way to avoid this is to compare yourself to yourself. We all are on a different journey, and you can focus on what you have overcome in your life and the successes you have achieved to grow into your best self.

5. Improve your Body Language

Take a look in the mirror and push your shoulder up and back. You look like a bada**! Your body language doesn't just show others that you are confident but makes you feel like you are on top of the world. This will also help with your blood circulation, so work it!

6. Create a Positive Mindset

Can you tell that positivity is a theme here?

To get into a mindset of positivity, you have to know yourself a little more. No one can always be positive; everyone has bad days. The mindset comes in when you have bad days. You can take the bad day and let it ruin your attitude and mood, or you can reflect on the day and take it as a lesson learned. Just reflecting and accepting that it was a bad day and taking something from it is positivity in itself. Just know that tomorrow is a new day, and you got this baby!

7. Accept Compliments

When given a compliment, TAKE IT!

I used to deflect compliments because I didn't believe it about myself. Remember that people don't just give praise for nothing. If you receive a compliment, thank them kindly and repeat it in your head. Consume that compliment and work it, because it is true.

8. Celebrate your Wins

When you win, that is hard work paid off! You deserve to celebrate your successes because you did that! Taking the time to have a celebration for your achievement really boosts your self-esteem. Reaching a goal or dream can be the best feeling ever, don't let it slip you by!

Little to No Confidence

This was a year and a half ago. I was slouching my shoulders everywhere I went. I felt like I lost my identity because I was no longer a college athlete. I didn't know what my identity was at the time. I started to work on myself, and little did I know working on myself would help me grow into the person I am supposed to be.

Improved Confidence &

Still Growing

I still have more room to grow my confidence. By no means am I perfectly where I am supposed to be. As humans, we can always improve ourselves. My goal is to improve myself, so I can help motivate others to grow into themselves.

Hope you have a wonderful week and work on building that confidence because you are the only YOU!

Thank you for reading.

Yours Truly,

Kenzie