6 ways to look confident – even if you don’t feel it!
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1. Stop slouching!
When you’re feeling down about yourself the temptation is to hide away, even when you’re around other people. One way to do this is by slouching, so that you’re taking up less space and probably hoping that no one notices you.
A good way of building self-confidence is to sit up straight and take up space. Instead of sliding down in your seat at work, straighten your spine, pull your shoulders back and push out your chin. Not only will you look more confident, you should start to feel it too.
2. Pick a power pose!
This is similar to not slouching in your seat, and is great at building confidence. Instead of leaning against the wall or hunching down when you stand, strike a pose with attitude. Think Wonder Woman, with your legs shoulder width apart, elbows out and hands on hips. When you stand like a superhero, it’s hard not to look - and feel - self-confident!
3. Make eye contact
Avoiding looking people in the eye is a classic sign of low self-confidence, but it really helps you to feel connected with others. This one boils down to posture too - if you stand tall and walk through life with your head held high then it’s actually quite hard to avoid eye contact.
4. Speak up…
Mumbling your way through the day and hesitating over your words is definitely not the way to building self-confidence. Speak slowly, loudly and clearly to give the appearance of self-confidence – this is particularly helpful if you need to give presentations at work and are feeling nervous about it.
Carrying on conversations will also help in building self-confidence, because it’s an opportunity to connect with other people, and share your feelings if appropriate. Often, it can be this very lack of human interaction that can lead confidence to dip in the first place.
5. …but don’t be scared of silence
Silence itself can sometimes zap self-confidence, because it can make people feel awkward. And when this awkwardness is felt by someone already lacking self-confidence, they’re often tempted to fill it with anything they can think of. Try to avoid doing this, and you’ll instantly look, and hopefully feel, like the classically self-confident ‘strong and silent’ type!
6. Give yourself a good hair day
Whatever else is going on in your world, a good hair day is a great way of building self-confidence. If dandruff is an issue that’s impacting your self-esteem, then use Head & Shoulders, which is formulated to get rid of flakes and leave your hair clean and healthy.
7. Smile!
Even if you’re not feeling great, simply turning that frown upside down can help. Not only will you appear more relaxed and approachable to others, but even by forcing a smile onto your face you’ll start to feel positive emotions that can boost your confidence.
What are your tips for building self-confidence?
Share how you do it in the comments below.