Creating trust in one’s powers and abilities
When describing someone who is successful, people are quick to agree that this person is confident and believes in what he or she is doing. They may say he or she is decisive, positive, and optimistic towards an outcome. Similarly, identifying someone who lacks self-confidence is relatively easy. They can be described as pessimistic, reluctant, and unwilling to take risks. So why don’t we just tell these individuals to be more positive, give them a few compliments and motivational quotations, so then they can be on their way to an enjoyable and successful life?
Unfortunately, mental health issues are not a simple fix. These issues are as diverse as the people that experience them. One person may be outgoing, but very vulnerable to any negative feedback, while another may be very nice, but tries to avoid interaction with other people out of fear of being judged. Other common signs of low self-confidence (and similarly, low self-esteem) include negative or hopeless thoughts, difficulty accepting compliments, frustration with oneself, negative comparisons to others, and an attribution of successes to luck or circumstance rather than personal capabilities. University students with self-confidence issues frequently have dissatisfying relationships with friends and family, feelings of self-doubt, a vulnerability to substance abuse, and can be greatly impacted by a poor grade.
It is commonly accepted that a change in perspective needs to occur to improve self-confidence. These changes can include focusing on learning from mistakes, rather than dwelling on failures, not relying on validation from others, getting involved in meaningful activities, and not trying to compare oneself to others all the time. The hindering thought of what could happen if one tries something new should become what’s the worst that could happen? But again, as mental health is a complex issue, there are a multitude of influences.
One interesting current field of research is investigating the role body position has on mood and body chemistry. Amy Cuddy, a professor and researcher at Harvard Business School, found that changing your posture to a more ‘powerful’ position (shoulders back, head up, more open, taking up more space) for as little as two minutes, increased the dominance hormone testosterone and decreased the stress hormone cortisol. Furthermore, when put through an experimental high-stress job interview, the subjects that were in the powerful poses beforehand were chosen as better candidates by observers blind to the study conditions.
Another point of focus for improving self-confidence may be acknowledging the little successes. In his address to the class of 2014 at the University of Texas at Austin, Naval Admiral William McRaven claims, “if you want to change the world, you need to make your bed.” This may sound trivial at first, but he explains that the little things in life have importance, and that if you accomplish this basic task, it sets you up to complete more tasks throughout your day. He also adds that if it ends up being a terrible day, “you will come home to a bed that is made, that you made.”
It may also be necessary to be reminded that social media presents an edited version of real life. In her recent ESPN article “Split Image,” Kate Fagan writes that the immense presence of social networking sites causes individuals to go through his or her daily life experiencing regular successes and failures, while he or she continually takes in the edited version of other people’s lives, the versions of themselves that they want to portray. This does not allow for fair comparisons to be made – yet this can be quickly forgotten because these are people one has likely met before.
Improving self-confidence can be a difficult task, with no quick solution. However, the more things you try in order to improve yourself, the more you can learn. Maybe something new needs to be added, such as a new skill or hobby, or maybe something needs to be removed, such as an unhealthy friendship. You will never know unless you try.
Photo by Victoria Henderson via CC BY 2.0/Modified