Self-confidence is a road block many of us face. Google
defines self-confidence as a feeling of trust in one’s abilities, qualities,
and judgment. In essence self-confidence is how you carry yourself and your
belief in your abilities. The world we live in makes it difficult to have a
healthy self-confidence. It is easy to scroll through social media and
instantly your self-confidence drops because you do not look like that girl. We all
want to “fit in” and this is a natural feeling but we need to learn that our
self-confidence is not predicated by the thoughts of others.
We all have had thoughts like: I hope everyone likes my
outfit or I hope he likes me. The problem with these thoughts is that they
cause people to seek validation from others and if they do not get that
validation their self-confidence drops. When we allow our self-confidence to be
based on the thoughts of others we are starting down a slippery slope.
I have gone down that slippery slope and it was a rude
awaking. I am a naturally happy and optimistic person who just loves life. In
high school I had an individual who negatively impacted my self-confidence and
how I viewed myself. She made me feel ashamed of my body and how I looked. At
this point in my life I needed validation from others to feel good about myself
and as a result I tried to be the person they felt I should be. By allowing
this to happen I severally damaged my self-confidence and I had to climb back
up that slippery slope.
Trying to rebuild or gain your self-confidence is difficult.
You have to face your insecurities and self-doubts head on. We all have baggage
that we are hanging onto and it is just weighing us down. It seems really easy
on paper but going through the process is exhausting and there will be times
you might wonder if it is even worth it. But when you finally get to a place
where your self-confidence is not predicated on other peoples thoughts it is
truly freeing. It is important to live your life for you and to allow your
self-confidence to reflect that. At the end of the day the only person’s
opinion that matters is your own.
How do you feel about your self-confidence? What can you do
to improve your self-confidence? How do you plan to make these improvements?
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