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Having self confidence didn’t come natural to either of us. We’re both introverted, and we still get butterflies when we try something new. We’ve also found without the right confidence boosters in our lives, we tend to be too hard on ourselves.

Having confidence in yourself not only can help you be more productive, happy and successful, but we’ve found it actually helps those around you too!

confidence boosters for more self confidence

If you’re confident in yourself, you’re going to be a comfort to those you’re around daily whether it’s a loved one or a team at work you lead.

They know you have whatever comes your way because of how you carry yourself.

Plus they know if you believe in yourself and your values, they know you’ll remain consistent during the good and bad times.

Being self confident can help with:

decision making
giving a presentation
job interviews
communicating with a difficult coworker
getting ahead at work by sharing ideas
personal relationships (skip the jealousy!)
land a new opportunity you want
speak up for your values
negotiating a deal or raise
overall peace of mind

That being said – building self confidence isn’t always easy.

That’s why we’re sharing tips on body image and simple confidence boosters you can do today!

What is Self Confidence?

Self confidence isn’t bragging or showing off. It’s really about being able to trust yourself – our abilities, judgement and values. It’s being able to be comfortable in your own skin no matter the situation.

How to Improve Your Body Image & Gain Self Confidence

As women, one place we struggle with self confidence is in our own body image. Out of all of the things we could focus on, we tend to go for the outward appearances first. For us, it started as early as being chubby in elementary school. Even now, I don’t think we truly see ourselves completely correctly. Body image can have an effect on going for opportunities, trying new things and even how healthy our relationships are. Therefore, we really want to dig into a few simple confidence boosters improve your body image.

Because you are capable for anything right now! Inside and out!

We just have to make sure you take the time for your heart and mind to see that! Luckily the tips below can be added to your normal routine pretty easily!

9 Tips to Improving Your Body Image

1. Stop the Comparisons

We all do it, and we all should stop. We always want what someone else has. Whether you want to be tall and thin or petite and curvy, you – right now – have something someone else is admiring whether you know it or not. Start focusing on the things you do like about yourself versus criticizing the things you don’t like.

2. Acceptance

Being kind to yourself and knowing your limits and what you can and can’t change is key. By accepting yourself just as you are right in this moment, you let go of the “I wish” or “I should” and live in the moment. We can’t grow taller or shorter, younger or older, or become someone else completely. You are right where you need to be.

3. Take Care Of Your Insides

Working out and eating right doesn’t mean you’re trying to just lose weight or get rid of cellulite. Being active and eating foods that make you feel good should be something you enjoy. If you feel like you hate “diet food” or dread exercise, it’s probably because you haven’t found the best plan for you. There are so many extreme plans out there, and really- – sticking to the basics are the best.

We’re the girls that hated PE, got picked last every week, and never hit the gym. It took some experimenting, but we found our happy balance and now share it with others!

We’d love to help you find the right meal plan and workout for you too! Learn more about our 21 Day Challenge and coaching here.

4. Take Care of Your Outsides

Working out and eating right can help you feel better, have more energy and gain more confidence. But it can take some time and trial and error.

Taking care of your outward appearance is sometimes easier!

Ditch buying clothes a size too small because you’ll lose weight one day. Shop and celebrate where you are right now and accentuate your best features.

Ideas for Outward Appearance:

What colors do you feel best in?
What fragrances make you feel pretty?
Do you like to wear jewelry?
If you’re not a clothes shopper, who around you could help you style yourself?

5. Keep Your Environment Clean

This sounds weird I know. But we tend to take on the same characteristics of our environment. If the airport is chaos, you’ll likely feel chaotic. Desk disorganized? Your thoughts will probably be equally distracting. Keeping a clean environment, lighting a candle or including fresh flowers can help you feel light inside too.

6. Try Personal Development

Reading or listening to a personal development book just 10 minutes a day can help change your mindset. Check out some of our favorite books for self confidence here.

7. Make Time for Self Care

Whether it’s a morning routine, a gratitude journal or prayer time, make time for yourself. Also see, How to Self Love – Is Loving Yourself to Love Others For Real?

8. Let Go of Perfection

I can look at a picture from 5 years ago, and think I looked pretty good! But at the time, I would knit pick the picture to death…my hair is too flat, my nostrils flare, check out that zit, etc. Remember to enjoy right now – yourself 5 years from now will thank you. Plus by just doing your best and forgetting the rest with any task is going to help cut back on stress and help you rest easier.

9. Take the Compliment Already

If someone says something nice about you to you, say thank you. You don’t have to add a qualifier or discredit it. Just take it. You earned it.

Confidence Boosters to Try Right Now

Gaining self confidence can be a long process, but there are simple confidence boosters you can do right now to feel stronger!

Take 15 more minutes to get ready.
Dress well.
Focus on positive thoughts.
When a negative thought pops up, ask yourself, “Is this helping me? Can I control this? Did I do my best?” Then change that attitude!
Identify things you like & don’t like. Then match your commitments accordingly.
Be generous. Rule: If 2 amounts come to mind for the tip, go with the larger one. You’ll feel better about yourself knowing you were generous.
Plan ahead – being prepared gives you a calm feeling during big events.
Listen vs Speak – Listening takes the focus off your worries and allows you to connect with others better.
Stand tall and carry yourself well.
Set small goals to hit each week. Accomplishments are a confidence booster!
Exercise increases endorphins for a boost in happiness and confidence!
Become a reader (or audio listener). Knowledge is power.
Listen to up-beat music or heavy-bass songs for a confidence boost.
Day dream – We spend time worrying all the time, day dreaming is the opposite and welcomes good thoughts!
Acknowledge everything you’re doing to become more confident.
Go out of your comfort zone – The larger we make that zone the larger your confidence will be!
Remember most people focus on their insecurities, so don’t sweat yours. Listen to them, and help them have a better day!

How Can You Really Be More Confident?

Self confidence isn’t just about your appearance or simple confidence boosters though. Disappointment, failure and frustration can lead us to have negative thoughts and low self esteem.

The really cool thing though?

You can always change your attitude. There are real, concrete things you can do daily to remind yourself to change your thoughts and gain confidence.

The only thing is that these concrete things can take time and practice to implement.

The first thing is to let go. We have to let go of our limiting thoughts and negativity.

One of my favorite movie quotes is from Pretty Woman. Vivian is a hooker (played by Julia Roberts), and Edward is her employer for the week (and then they fall in love!) I love it because it totally identifies how hard we can take one comment in our lives or worse – allow someone to say we aren’t good enough.

Vivian: “People put you down enough, you start to believe it.”

Edward: “I think you are a very bright, very special woman.”

Vivian: “The bad stuff is easier to believe. You ever notice that”

If we’ve heard we’re not good enough 1 or 1 million times, we need to hear we are good enough even more to counteract it.

This might mean limiting a friendship or changing some of your social circles which can be scary. However, it will be so worth it. Just like Vivian found Edward, you’ll find a new crowd that respects you.

Another exercise to limit negative thinking is:

Come up with five positive thoughts to counter every one negative thought.
Review the list every time the negative one pops up.
Acknowledge both good and bad emotions.
Label the emotions for what they truly are and move on.
Practice the confidence boosters above often.

The 2nd step to gain self confidence? Trust yourself.

You’d think you’d learn to trust yourself naturally. I mean, you are the only one with yourself every day every minute; however, we often second guess ourselves. For me, this is due to wanting to make others happy or not put them out. I also never want to make a mistake.

You can’t ever grow living in the middle like that though.

One of the most powerful things you can do to grow in your confidence is to learn to make decisions quickly. This not only helps you learn from changes, but it also helps you see what is the most important thing to you.

The other thing is to remember that your job in life isn’t to please everyone. It’s impossible. You can hope people respect you because of your values and work, but your confidence shouldn’t ride on other people’s opinion of you. It has to come from within.

The Importance Of Self Appreciation

I want to wrap this post on confidence boosters with one of my favorite quotes:

You set the expectation for how others treat you.

Another way to say this is if you don’t appreciate yourself, no one else will either.

I refer to this quote a lot for my own self. As you grow in your self confidence, you might find that you’ve been a people pleaser or allowed people to take too much of your time, emotion or energy.

As you start to change, they may be resistant to it. It’s important to me to remember, I’m the one changing how I expect to be treated. So I need to gently outline that when we’re together and also remember it if they get a little peeved. It’s not their fault or mine – just change. (and it’s worth it! We should always be growing).

And as I’ve grown, it’s been neat to see and learn that really your confidence and happiness has to come from your own self worth. People may be able to act as confidence boosters for you for a little while, but in the end – it comes down to you and what you think of yourself.

That’s why these tips are so important to not only skim through once but actually put into practice.

You might not be where you want to be today. That’s okay.

You have a starting point to move forward.

If you’re pretty happy with where you are, you still have to keep growing. We’re either growing or regressing, and I know which one I want to be doing! It takes time and effort – but it helps everyone else around you too. So don’t be afraid to take the time to grow and practice these confidence boosters!