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How to Build Confidence and Self Esteem

The strategies to build confidence can be divided into two sections. The first set are practical tips to overcome FEAR - which is the Number ONE reason for low self confidence.

These are followed by tips that can help you address low self esteem, as overcoming low self esteem naturally improves confidence as well.

5 tips to build confidence

Here are 5 practical tips that can help you build your self confidence:

1. practice reacting aggressively and positively towards fears in your imagination

Do this every time fear creeps into your imagination. See yourself reacting aggressively and positively towards those fears. It will be a matter of time before those reactions extend to reality when those or similar situations show up in your actual, day-to-day life.

2. Take risks

Go ahead. Take risks. And set out to do what your heart desires. As Lee Ann Womack said, when you get the choice to sit it out or dance, CHOOSE TO DANCE.

How to build confidence?

Do What You Fear! And next point provides tips on how to go about doing that.

3. "Act as if it were impossible to fail."

Dorthea Brande expressed it perfectly, didn't she? Follow her advice. When you set out to do what your heart desires, follow Nike's advice and "JUST DO IT".

Know that it can be done, and you can do it.. it's just that you need to invoke that ability in you that gets it done. If a mistake does happen along the way, do not dwell, just correct your actions as you go along.

As you do this every time, you'll find that your confidence soars. You'll set higher goals, and you'll not be afraid to take additional help as you need to get there.

How do you handle fear and anxiety barriers that you run into, in real situations everyday? Subsequent points provide ideas for just that.

4. Relax your fear away

Psychology studies suggest that it is impossible to feel fear when the muscles of the body are kept perfectly relaxed.

So the moment you recognize the dread or anxiety creeping in during a situation, identify those tightening muscles and focus on relaxing them. Relaxing your muscles is also a common anger management tip.

5. Substitute the feeling of fear with another "positive, feel good" feeling

Think about anything that strikes the chord and leaves you with a pleasant taste. Capture the feeling, and replace the feeling of fright with it.

As Maxwell Maltz says, you may not be able to forcefully drive the fear away by sheer will power, but you can easily substitute it with another good feeling.

As soon as you identify a negative thought creeping into your mind, change your internal dialogue to reverse the thought and put a positive spin to it. The moment you identify any irrational "what ifs" in your mind, replace them with "I'll handle it" or "It can be done" or "I'll figure it out".

Need some help in putting the above tips into practice
in your day-to-day life, quickly and naturally?

Listen to focused hypnosis audios regularly; they can help shift your thoughts into a positive gear, leading to a greater confidence. Learn more