Right Where You Are is the Best Place to Bloom

Increase Your Level of Confidence

Confidence. Some people have it in spades and others have to search far and wide for it.  For some, it comes naturally, and others have to work at it. Our confidence, of course, is high in some areas and non-existent in others. It has a roller-coaster mentality of ups and downs. I think we can all relate to riding on the confidence merry-go-round. So how do we bloom right where we are? How do we seize the moment and find our full self in it?

Confidence is defined as having trust in one’s self in regard to our judgment, ability, and qualities. But did you know that our level of confidence depends upon the degree of our emotional, physical, and social health? The more we have a higher degree of emotional stability, physical good health, and feel socially accepted, the more confidence we have. The more confidence we have, the more we bloom!

Try These to Boost Your Confidence and Find Yourself Blooming:

Learn Something New

Learning something new actually changes the chemistry within your brain. Learning something new also makes you feel better about yourself. It excites you and you begin to see yourself with a sense of accomplishment. This, in turn, makes you proud of yourself which gives you more confidence.

Do Something Out of Your Comfort Zone

When picking something to try that is out of your comfort zone, don’t go too far out but just enough to get that excited and bit scary feeling. Here is what I say… pick an activity that you know will help you feel better about yourself simply for trying. The key here is simply to try something. You do not need to be great at it. You do not need to succeed at it. And, you do not need to walk away conquering whatever it is. The act of trying something that makes you a bit nervous and knowing you had the courage to do it is enough to help boost your confidence.

Retry Something You Previously Did Not Do Well

One way to boost our confidence and self-esteem is to try something in which our first attempt didn’t go so well and see what happens. Trying something again at a later time and under different life circumstances may actually result in you doing whatever it is well. A different mindset, more mature, a different set of priorities, values, etc. may actually allow you to accomplish something you previously could not.

Give Yourself a Challenge You Can Realistically Do

Pick something that you know you can do but have never tried before. It might be an art class or ceramics. Join a book club. Find something that interests you and just go for it.  Again, make it something real that you know you can do. Choose something that fits into your lifestyle, interests, and especially your schedule.

Begin to do Things by Yourself

While it is always fun to be with those we love, it is also important to do some things on your own. Take a day trip somewhere or a long weekend trip by yourself. Take a new class on something by yourself. Whatever interests you, do it by yourself. The act of doing something by yourself means that you must rely only on you. You must make decisions without anyone else’s input or opinion. You must face any challenge by yourself and figure it out. Spending time by yourself makes you believe more in yourself and, thus, you got it… it increases your confidence and self-esteem. So have a healthy balance in the life of doing things with others and doing things alone.

Why is it Important to Have High Self-Esteem and Confidence?

One’s emotional and psychological well-being hinges on many factors in our life. Thus, our level of self-esteem and confidence is a direct reflection of those things. Having a high level of confidence in yourself is essential to living a full and happy productive life.

Here are a few benefits of having high self-esteem and confidence:

1. Life seems “lighter” which means less stress
2. More inner peace and stability
3. Attract more like-minded and positive people into your life
4. Can handle difficult situations more easily
5. Less of that inner self-critic chattering in your ear
6. Makes you happier
7. Opens you up to different opportunities
8. Less likely to be influenced or controlled by others
9. Makes you kinder and nicer to others
10. Less comparing yourself to others

Self-Love is Critical

Our minds are powerful! What we put into our minds or allow into our minds has a direct connection to what manifests in our lives. What we feed our minds results in how we think of ourselves. Nothing is more important than what YOU think about YOU! I am not saying that it is easy to not compare ourselves to others or to listen to those who have negative things to say about us. However, you must love yourself and know who you truly are regardless of what others say.

Self-love is critical to a happy, healthy life. The more you love yourself, the happier you are and the less you listen to the chatter of others.  Feed your mind positive things every day about yourself! Go out and know you are strong, you are courageous, and you got this world by the tail. See what amazing things happen when you know who you are and have confidence in you!

What do you do in your life to gain more confidence? Let us know in the comments at the bottom of this page. We want to hear from you! 

Dr. Bethany Johnson is a professor of sociology with 20 years of teaching in the classroom and online. As well, she has a B.S. and Master’s degree in sociology, as well as, an Ed.D in Workforce Education. Her passion is motivating people towards a positive and self-rising mindset in today’s busy world. Her heart also lies in helping women recognize that one’s age does not define who you are or what you can do.

She currently lives in Georgia with her husband and son. She loves reading, spending time with family and friends, as well as, traveling. If you find her on a beach, she is in her happy place! As well, she can be contacted at drbjohnson@email.com.

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