Confidence is one of the few key attributes that separates the successful from unsuccessful people. Very few people are as confident as they would like to be. In fact, many of us “fake” confidence until we become what we want to be. Self-confidence is very important because it shows up in everything we do and everywhere we go.

Are you feeling low on confidence today? The good news is you are not alone, the way you think of yourself is only a premise. It’s simply an idea in your mind that you’ve built your entire personality on. And you can change that idea any time you want by thinking and acting differently.

So here’s 3 ideas that I personally use whenever my confidence tank starts heading towards empty.

1. Fake it until you become it – OK, I know what you are thinking but this is different. If you want to gain confidence, start to feed your mind—through a practice called “autosuggestion” (google it)—a steady feed of thoughts of confidence and courage and perhaps of life as you want it to be to your subconscious mind will eventually build self-confidence. You are what you think you are. When you think you’re important, others think you are important too. When you think you are worth £10/hour, that’s exactly the value that your time will be paid for. Because how you think determines how you act. And how you act determines how others react to you. So speak to your mind until it believes you!
2. Experience it – One of the biggest causes of low confidence is a famous four lettered word – FEAR – False Evidence Appearing Real and that’s exactly what it is. You’ll need to confront your fears head on and experience them. The more you do something you thought you couldn’t do, the more confident you become. Feel the fear, but do it anyway.
3. Quit worrying – I have a rule about worrying and its simply this. If you can’t change or control whatever you are worrying about, then stop worrying. You have absolutely have no control over the decision that has been made by the board nor does your boss to change the strategic direction of the company – why worry about it? The rule of thumb here is that if you can control or change your circumstance, change it or else quit worrying as well as waste your time and others over things you have no influence over.
4. Surround yourself with confident people – This is a bonus point! You are the 5 people that you usually hang out with – check your gang of 5. So in the event that you need some positive, energetic and inspired people around you, ensure your friends and family frequently express positivity about your plans and capabilities. The last thing you want is to become mired in everyone else’s doubt.

If you’d like to be more confident in one or more areas of your life, I surely hope that the above will help. It provides simple ways to quickly change how you think of yourself, and earn more respect and attention from others in the process.