Have you ever wanted to feel more confident?
I have.
The first time I spoke in front of my Toastmasters club (an organization that helps people practice public speaking) I was so nervous that my voice trembled and my hands shook. I so wanted to do a good job. Yet I was a novice speaker and even the friendly crowd of people at Toastmasters felt intimidating to me. I wished I had more confidence.
Confidence has to do with our own assessment of our abilities.
When I gave that first speech I knew I was in over my head. My lack of confidence reflected that.
To be more confident we need to improve our assessment of our abilities.
One way to do this is to work on mindset. Think of times you were successful in the past and borrow confidence from those achievements. I used to do this a lot. I would think of a really tough swim practice I’d excelled at. I’d think to myself, ‘Well, if I could do that then I could probably do this other thing.’
The other way to build your confidence is to forge it.
Here’s what I mean.
When I began working on public speaking I wasn’t very good at it. But it was something that I wanted to do well. So I kept trying. I pushed myself to speak at venues outside of my Toastmasters club, even to crowds of hundreds of people. Some of the speeches I gave when I was learning were better than others, but over time I improved significantly.
I still go to Toastmasters to practice and improve my public speaking. Just the other day a newer member of my club asked me how I was able to speak so naturally and with such confidence. The answer is pretty much that I worked on it.
So what’s the magic formula to improve your confidence?
- Attempt something hard that interests you.
- Stick with it until you get it.
- Note your overall confidence level has increased.
- Repeat.
Push yourself. Extend your comfort zone. Try something that challenges you. And, this is important, don’t give up until you accomplish what you set out to do. You will start out feeling uneasy, but by the time you finish your confidence will soar.
What have you found helpful for improving your confidence? Leave a comment below!
<!—-
Now that you know how to build your confidence, use it to blaze a new career path.
Join our Career Clarity online training and get the clear on your next career steps!
Click Here to Reserve Your Seat
—-!>
Thank you for your help ma’am.I like especially ‘borrow the confidence’ part.I really need this and I am too bad at this.So thank you once again.
Glad it resonated with you Rushabh!
Very good advice and it makes a lot of sense. Gonna try to think of something that’s challenging but something that interests me. I guess like everything else in life it’s practice, practice, practice.
Good luck Patty! I’d love to hear how it goes. 🙂
Hey Allison, thanks for the great advice!
I got a big confidence boost this week when I wrote a cover letter for a job. When I spelled out my qualifications and why I’d be great for the job, I convinced myself! : )
Wonderful! Fingers crossed that you get the position you’re applying for. 🙂
Awesome, Superlative, Excellent, Fantastic, Fabulous, Fabulous, Magnificent, ….. . No amount of adjectives would be enough for the way you write…. Btw I have just done my Ice Breaker speech. I did it ok, but the fear of public speaking is still there. I am sure I will draw confidence by reading your posts regularly and also practicing in front of mirror. Keep up your good work..
Thanks so much for your kind words Shanky! It’s always my intent for these posts to be inspiring or helpful, so I appreciate you taking the time to write that I hit the mark. 🙂
Some really interesting points you have written.Helped me a lot,
just what I was looking for :D.
Glad this was helpful to you Yeezy!