Ways To Build Self-Confidence

I think it would only be fair for me to first explain the importance of having self-confidence, before even showing you how to develop that. What I have noticed, is that due to the messages that we as young receive from society; our peers; the media; our teachers; and our parents, we get kind of affected a great deal when it comes to our levels of self-confidence and/or self-belief.



We sometimes care too much what people think or say about us, unconsciously even. It's actually nice to protect your public image but letting others determine your strengths and limits will definitely harm you. So where does self-confidence fit in all of this? The human mind was built to store some images or words without you even noticing. Some of us grew up being told that you can only start a business when you're rich because "imali iya emalini" which basically means "money attracts money".

The kind if mentality that was planted in us is the one that kind of limits you. Imagine being told everyday that you're so dumb, you will never be anything in life. Sometimes you try to ignore that but most of the time it always haunts you. That's where self-confidence fits in, stopping those criticising words from coming back and actually practically limiting your abilities. I am trying to actually help young people to realize their full potential and the possibilities the world has and how to be innovative enough, no matter who you are or where you from, to make those possibilities work in you favour.

Steps to take:

1. Find out how your past has shaped your present. The most important part of every journey is the starting point and the road that leads there. Learning how your past has shaped you present state, will help you look at where you want to go. This should include who you have lived with; where you have live; and all the events that happened to you from birth and which events did you learn from.
2. Learn about your values and beliefs. Knowing your values and beliefs help in the part we talked about earlier- not giving a f#*k what people think or say about you. This will be further explained in number 5.
3. Find out your strengths and weaknesses. Know your qualities; talents and areas of improvement. This will help you in working on your weaknesses and in nurturing your talents to full potential.
4. What are you goals and dreams? Let's towards something we already know. Where do you see yourself literally tomorrow; in 5 days from now; 5 years later? And what is your plan to make that goal or dream a reality.
5. Learn the basics of communication. Being confident means being able to speak to others or in front of people.
6. Follow each step on the 365 steps to self confidence book. Download the book here
7. Smile to yourself on the mirror, and then pretend to be confident until you get confident. Fake it til you become it. Pretend to be confident even if you're not. Eventually you will becone it.
8. Watch your body language and the tone of your voice. This is a post for another day. For now, we will leave it at that, I will extend this point soon.

Good luck on your journey and remember,

"If  you deliberately plan to be less than you are capable of being, then I warn you that you will be unhappy for the rest of your life.  You’ll be evading your own capabilities, your own possibilities." -Professor Abraham Maslow