“Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye.” — Helen Keller
At work confidence is key. Strong self-esteem can get you out of that comfort zone and help you reach new targets. On the flip side if you are very low on confidence it can have a profound effect on your workplace relations. It may stop you from achieving much more in your professional career. Here are six tips that you can use at work to get that boost in confidence.
Positive thinking
When you are low on confidence in a particular situation, you are probably telling yourself that ‘I can’t do this’ and that ‘this is going to go horribly wrong’. You need to turn this negativity on its head. Instead of all the negativity, you need to tell yourself that ‘I can do this’ and ‘things will work out fine’. Remember, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.
Fake it till you make it
When attempting a new task or challenge, it is understandable to feel under-confident. If you are beginning a new job, you can’t be expected to know precisely what you’re doing right from the outset. However, if you adopt a positive frame of mind and act confidently, you’ll be amazed how far that will take you. Not only will other people trust in your capabilities, but you’ll begin to realise that you are a capable person with many skills to offer.
Everyone Makes Mistakes
You need to realise that if you always need to be perfect you will always feel incompetent. Nobody is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes at work and you will too. This is totally fine. It’s important to learn from them and move on. Once you let go the need to be perfect it will free yourself to take risks and try new things.
Focus on your achievements
It’s hard to exuberate confidence if you are always complaining about what you didn’t do well. Remind yourself of all the successful projects you have executed. Did you meet a tight deadline? Did you save a project that was failing? Did you get praise from a boss? Thinking back on successful times at work is a far better approach to be more confident than focusing on the negatives.
Learn new skills
There is always room to improve and learning new skills will not only enhance your capabilities of doing a good job but will also increase confidence. Keep an eye what other people are doing well and try and mirror that. Attend events and workshops intended to help you improve your skills and become a better worker. Of course, learn skills that help specifically to your job.
Have Fun
There’s nothing worse for your confidence than taking yourself too seriously. First and foremost, it’s important to do a good job but that’s not to say you can’t do it without having a bit of fun. Put yourself out there and go to after-work events and join the company’s social clubs. This will boost your confidence and make you feel more confident around your colleagues.
