1 – Cleanliness Is Close to Confidence
When you wake up, cleaning yourself up should be among your first priorities. A routine of heading to the bathroom to wash up starts your day off right; you’re the star of your own personal movie, and a trip to the green room will make you feel like a million bucks inside, no matter what your bank account says. Keeping clean will also make you less self-conscious around other people, as your thoughts won’t be lingering on whether or not your breath smells, or there’s an odor coming from your armpits, feet, etc.
2 – Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall
While you’re cleaning up in the bathroom, it’s difficult not to look in the mirror, as they’re usually equipped. Look yourself in the eyes and see what it is that other people see when they look at you. Practice saying and doing things in the mirror to understand how you’re coming off to the outside world. Also give yourself a pep talk. You’ll see in the mirror the way someone reacts when they truly care about you, so you’ll have a bar to measure people with.
3 – Think about It
Where did I put that damn HDMI cable? We are our own God; regardless of who or where you are, you’re responsible for the way you interact with the world. If you want to be confident, you have to think confident. This means not doubting yourself–instead, coach and motivate yourself. The power of positive and negative thinking can transform you, and, since you’re you, it’s in your best interests to have a positive mindset about yourself.
4 – Dress to Impress
Everyone judges everyone. When you see someone dressed up, you naturally treat them with more respect than you would someone sloppy–it’s like how you drive a little better when there’s a cop driving behind you (unless you’re rich or daddy’s a politician), and you don’t mouth off to a soldier (unless you’re a hippie or insurgent). Here’s a tip: store security dresses up in pressed black clothes to look like cops and deter you from theft for a fraction the cost of real bacon (and with less cholesterol).
5 – Be Prepared
Athletes watch hours of footage every day to study themselves and their opponents. Artists paint thousands of pictures, play thousands of songs, and dance thousands of dances before their work registers in your senses. People may be born with certain strengths and weaknesses, but preparation for the events in your life makes a world of difference in improving how confident you are.
6 – Improve Your Posture
Dear Santa, In what universe is a piano a drum set? Don’t slouch! When you’re hunched over, you look smaller. Have you ever seen a nature video? In the animal kingdom, a common survival method is to bulk up (or at least make yourself appear larger). This works on people too. You don’t see the President or a CEO hunched over looking at their feet, so why are you?
7 – Move with a Purpose
The way you walk goes a long way in affecting how you’re perceived. The WWE is a great place to see this in the wild. Though not allowed to compete in the Olympics, professional wrestlers have a style about them. Each individual wrestler is defined by their entrance, their strut, and their attitude well before they earn that undisputed championship belt. It doesn’t matter whether you win or lose; it’s how you strut that counts. Just don’t get all Spider-Man 3 about it.
8 – Look People in the Eye
This dog was owned by Rapper, Ice T…here’s the proof… Feeling confident means having power over your surroundings; it means people around you are treating you the way you want. Looking someone in the eye is a great way to show people you’re confident. This will build trust, and you’ll be more attuned them, picking up their visual cues. If you learn to read these cues, you’ll be able to convince yourself you can control the world around you with the power of your own voice.
9 – Stick to Your Guns
Remember all those positive things you said to yourself in the mirror? Continue saying them throughout the day. You have to reinforce your confidence; it’s not something you decide to be, and it magically happens. Sticking to your guns also means standing up for what you believe in. Doing so will give you the confidence to say what you mean and mean what you say, no matter what anyone thinks of you.
10 – Learn and Burn
Study and exercise are the best ways to boost your confidence. There’s a certain power you get knowing you’re the smartest person in the room. Knowing that you’re able to defend yourself is powerful as well. Your energy levels will be higher, you’ll be more alert, and you’ll be a constantly-evolving person. I’m confident there are no downsides to studying and exercising.
11 – Baby Steps to Success
Above all else, know that it takes baby steps to get anywhere in life. Overnight success doesn’t exist; it’s a myth, just like Zeus, unicorns, and a decent movie with the word “vs.” in the title. Don’t get frustrated if things don’t go as planned, and don’t give up–continue planning, acting, doing, and gaining the confidence to succeed.
