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Building Your Self-Confidence for a Better New Year

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How to create a better mindset to build self-confidence and boost your career potential 

Self-confidence is critical to succeeding in your career.

You may have lost your job earlier in 2020. You may have a job but live in fear that you could lose your livelihood in a COVID economy. Under such circumstances, it’s perfectly understandable that your self-confidence might take a hit.

What is self-confidence?

Self-confidence refers to the degree to which you trust your abilities, qualities, and judgment.

In truth, a strong sense of self-confidence can profoundly influence how you respond to career and business opportunities. For instance, it can give you the courage to know yourself, believe in yourself, and take actions based on your belief in yourself.

How do you respond to your environment?

Altogether, the situations you encounter each day, the circumstances you experience, the people you interact with, and even the media sources you rely on unquestionably impact the way you view yourself.

Self-confident individuals continually evaluate the influence of situations and circumstances on the way they think. They realize the value of recognizing their shortcomings and strive to be honest in improving their deficiencies.

They understand that it is always best to be flexible and not expect that everything will go as planned—because it rarely does.

Self-confidence comes from within you

Consider the following questions:

  1. Do you find yourself focusing on how you are influenced by others rather than how you influence them?
  2. Does your self-confidence depend on the validation that results from your achievements and the affirmation you receive from others?
  3. Do you feel as though you are a victim of your circumstances?

If you maintain a strong sense of self-confidence, you will undoubtedly discover that your experiences offer “internal lessons.” Subsequently, through these lessons, you learn how to look inward and make changes in your own best interest.

For instance, you may encounter individuals who are unkind or unethical. Others may make you feel inferior or insecure. Still others may work to undermine or even oppose your career progress.

Regardless, you can grow in self-confidence as you learn how to cope with such individuals from various situations and shared circumstances.

Truth and authenticity

When you commit to being truthful and more authentic with yourself, your self-confidence will grow. Here are a few suggestions for accomplishing this goal:

1.  Discover your own opinions

Don’t be too quick to adopt someone else’s opinions as your own, even if that person is well-known or has a vast media audience or following. Celebrity status doesn’t automatically make an individual’s views correct.

It’s okay to listen, but take the time to examine ideas and concepts from different perspectives before adopting them as your own. Doing so will help you more effectively evaluate what you’ve experienced and will provide a sound basis for your own views.

2.  Continue learning

We are all a work in progress. In other words, it’s okay if you don’t have all the answers. Give yourself credit for your willingness to learn, and that includes the courage to change your mind as you challenge your own opinions and ideas.

3.  Represent yourself truthfully

Your personal and professional truths can give you energy, strength, and credibility.

Misrepresenting yourself destroys self-confidence because you have to live in fear that people will inevitably discover your truth.

Living a lie is one of the most exhausting things you will ever do. I have observed individuals doing this throughout my career. Thus, I am convinced that self-confidence flourishes in an atmosphere of truth and authenticity.

Your career in 2021

If your career has struggled in 2020, it’s normal for your self-confidence to have suffered as well. Your career progress was likely a casualty of a historically horrific year. What you’re feeling is an understandable reaction to what has been a monumentally discouraging year for millions of people.

As you look to 2021, take a moment, breathe deeply, and prepare to move on. It’s time to review your list of strengths and varied experiences. You can then begin to rebuild your self-confidence and get ready to face 2021 head-on.

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About the Author: David Cox

David Cox is a Co-owner of TPB Business Copyediting. He writes to encourage us to apply our multidisciplinary training and experiences to develop our current career role further.