How would you describe a confident person?
Someone who knows where they're going in life; someone who knows their own mind; someone who is not afraid to go against the grain and stand up for what they believe in perhaps? Would you describe yourself as a confident person?
If you have self-confidence, you are comfortable in your own skin: you are someone who sticks with what you believe in and what you believe to be right, even if others try to persuade you otherwise or criticise you for your beliefs. You believe in yourself and you make your own decisions in life.
Does that sound like you?
If you lack self-confidence, the decisions you make in life will be influenced by the thoughts and actions of other people: you are someone who is concerned by what other people think of you and, as a consequence, you will change your own thoughts and actions accordingly. You choose to believe in others before yourself. Does that sound like you?
So what is self-confidence?
If you have it, where did you get it from and if you don't have it, where can you get it from? Is self-confidence something you're born with or is it something you can acquire? Self-confidence can be described as a positive mix of self-efficacy and self-esteem, and the good news is that everyone can acquire it.
Confidence is a mental skill.
No one is born with skill, skills are things that can only be learned and developed through practice. Footballers don't become skilled players without dedicated practice, musicians don't become skilled performers without dedicated practice, and skilled cooks don't become skilled in the kitchen without dedicated practice. Confidence is no exception; it's a skill that can be learned but to master the skill takes dedicated practice. The first step towards building self-confidence is therefore to accept that it's a process - and it's not an overnight one!
The next step is to set yourself some goals in life.
If it's your goal to become more confident, why do you want to be more confident? What would self-confidence bring into your life? With specific goals in place, it then becomes possible to set smaller, achievable yet still challenging, and relevant stepping-stone goals in place to help keep you moving forwards on your journey towards your ultimate goal. Each time a stepping-stone goal is successfully achieved, your confidence receives a boost.
Ever heard the expression 'success breeds success'? It basically means that achieving success at any level and in any area of life generally leads to achieving further success. Well, exactly the same applies in terms of confidence - confidence breeds confidence. Each boost in confidence you receive leads to the development of further confidence. Confidence grows. So, it's not so much, "how confident are you?" it's, "how confident do you want to be?" Go get it!
Want to learn More About Donald MacNaughton?
http://donmacnaughton.org/
His work spans leadership and performance development in both the corporate and sporting arenas. Zoned in Performance is a business consultancy specialising in High Performance Coaching and Performance Psychology.
Using proven, effective and inspirational coaching techniques, Don MacNaughton helps clients unlock potential, achieve lasting breakthroughs and increase individual and team performance. Find out more at High Performance Coaching Guide
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Don_MacNaughton
