Life doesn’t always go the way we hope it to and often, when we take a knock so does our confidence. Things going wrong can leave us feeling despondent and quite honestly lacking in confidence in ourselves. It takes a long time to realise that failing once doesn’t make us a failure even though most of us have been conditioned to not allow ourselves the option of failure and as a result end up being really hard on ourselves when we do fail.
Sometimes when we fall down, we need a little encouragement to help us get back up.
The truth is that we don’t always have a team of cheerleaders following behind us and we need to be our own biggest supporters.
Maybe you need to do a little faking it till you make it to get back on your feet. I’m not encouraging you to lie about how you feel but sometimes when we’ve taken a knock, a new hairstyle and a day out can help us feel better about ourselves. We need to find balance though. A little bit of pretending and a little bit of getting back to where you need to be.
As the good old saying goes, dress for the job you want, not the job you have. I stand by that saying and honestly believe it extends to the rest of our lives.
So you’ve taken a knock and that sucks but it’s what you do next that makes all that difference.
What you can do to start believing in yourself
- You need to take action. Make a conscious decision to get back out there and make it happen for yourself. This starts with body language. How we carry ourselves often determines how we see ourselves as well as how others see us. People who are confident are usually taken more seriously than those that seem unsure, even if they know less than the insecure looking person. People want to know that you know what you’re talking about. Accept that you may not know everything but you probably do know a lot of a field that you’re an expert in. That can be anything. I for one am an expert in ME so I decided to build an entire blog around my opinion because no one knows my opinion better than I do. When you feel ready, start planning the way forward and deciding what you want to achieve.
- You need to stay away from negativity. It’s so easy to get caught up with the opinions of negative people but that does nothing for you. Try – and I know it isn’t always the easiest thing to do but try – and be as positive as you can be. Sometimes simply believing that things will get better is enough to make you get up and make sure that things do get better. I’m not saying you can just expect that to happen on its own, I’m just saying that the more you believe it, the more you think it, the harder you will work to making it happen.
- Step outside of your comfort zone. Do things that make you really happy even if they’re things that you never expected to do. Take up surfing, learn how to bake or join a dance class. It doesn’t really matter what you decide to do. All that really matters is that in learning a new skill you will gain new confidence in your abilities. Even just trying is sometimes enough to change your entire mindset.
- Take back the control over your life. Eleanor Roosevelt is famous for the saying “no one can make you feel inferior without your consent” and it’s a good motto to carry with you through your life. Never give anyone else power over how you feel. Never let anyone tell you that you can’t do something. If you’re prepared to put in the work, dedication and commitment then you need to believe in yourself and the rest will follow.
So when you’re ready to start faking it till you make it, remember to take these actions;
- Chin up, shoulders back.
- Take action towards achieving your goals.
- Stay positive and keep motivated.
- Step outside your comfort zones.
- Follow your dreams and your heart.
- Believe in yourself.
Everyone has days when they don’t believe in themselves and their abilities. What is important is knowing that you have the potential to be anything you want to be. You just have to want to achieve your dreams badly enough and to believe in yourself and your ability to make things happen.
[bctt tweet=”Always believe in yourself because if you don’t believe in yourself, who will? ” username=”tyrannyofpink”]
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Lovely post Jonelle. A friend and I were just talking along the same lines just yesterday. You hit on probably all the points that we were chatting a storm around. Sometimes you just gotta keep moving even when you can’t see your way perfectly clear….and believe you have the ability to change your life!
Thank you Jolene. Sometimes I feel like it’s almost easier to pretend you’re okay than to accept the truth and it can be a way of not dealing with the issue but I find that I deal with things much better from a position of strength than weakness. You don’t always see land till it’s nearby if you know what I mean. Did you and your friend come up with any that I didn’t? Would love to know.