Give Yourself a Vote of Confidence!

 Every year, women in America celebrate National Confidence Day – and as a big part of my work as a Transformation Coach focuses on confidence, I’m all for joining in with that!  The day is about increasing self-belief and showing women how radiating confidence can help them to reach their goals, which is something I regularly see happening with my clients.  However, as great as it is to have particular days to raise awareness of certain issues, I think this is something that should be recognised and celebrated each and every day!

Often, when women come to me with an ambition or a goal they’d like to achieve, I discover that a lack of confidence is a key factor in holding them back.  Without self-belief, they’re frightened of setting the wheels in motion in case they fail, or they might have started the process but at the first setback they begin to doubt themselves again.  Almost paradoxically, a fear of success is another obstacle I see because they’re afraid of not being up to the task if their venture does take off!

In addition to their own insecurities, many women find that when they share their dreams and aspirations with their partner or friends, the fears of those people become yet another blocker!

Using my tools and techniques as a Coach and Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapist, I help women to unlock their confidence and let its power drive them forward.  And once their confidence is unleashed – wow! – there’s usually no stopping them!

Being self-assured is great in a business environment.  When people see that you’re cool, calm and in control they’ll trust you to get the job done.  Confidence also helps to inspire and motivate others, which is great if you have staff to manage or a team to lead. And if you have a client-facing business, glowing with confidence will do wonders for the ‘brand’ you present.  I’m sure we’ve all had that experience at a networking event, for instance.  Someone stands up and simply exudes confidence and passion as they talk about their business…and it simply makes you want to connect to find out their secret!  (or perhaps rub shoulders with them in the hope that some of that confidence rubs off on you!).

Of course self-assurance doesn’t always come easy.

We can wake up one day absolutely brimming with confidence, sailing through the day with everything going our way…only to feel floored when delivering a presentation that doesn’t quite go to plan.

Why is this?

All too often, we place our levels of confidence and esteem in the hands of others, relying on recognition or validation for a ‘job done well’ as proof of our success and worthiness.

And this is one of the many reasons why I love working with women to help them to recognise their abilities and worth and thereby putting them more in control of their own self-belief.

So, if you’re ready to give your own confidence a boost, you can start right now, with these tips…

Suss out your strengths

We all have things we’re good at – so make a list of yours then find ways to incorporate them into each day. Doing what you’re good at will keep your confidence levels up and is a great way to get you back on track if you have a day when things don’t go quite right.

Weed out your weaknesses

Ignoring your weaknesses won’t make them go away – in fact, if you don’t address them they’ll just keep wearing away at your self-assurance. Instead, decide what you’re going to do about your weaknesses – you could choose to delegate them, reduce them or work on overcoming them.

Be prepared

Preparing for situations really helps with confidence. Imagine going into a meeting without looking over your notes or checking you have all the information you need. Your heart’s probably racing at the very thought! Now think about how much more unflustered and confident you’d feel if you went in knowing you were well prepared.

Repeat after me…

‘I can do this!’.  Positive affirmations help you to believe in yourself and the more you repeat them, the more permanent an effect they have on your brain.  So, when you’re lying in bed at night with your brain ticking over with worries from the day, just keep repeating your own personal ‘feel good’ phrases, mantra-style.  For example, “I am great at what I do”, “I love helping others” or “I am a confident presenter”.

Keep a success file

Fill a box file with testimonials, thank you letters, congratulatory emails and any other examples of achievements and milestone reached. These are your ‘pat on the back’ moments, so keep dipping into your box to remind yourself how capable and brilliant you are!

Capture all your successes!