CONFIDENCE = SUCCESS
5 Ways to Live Confidently NOW
“With confidence, you have won before you have started” ~Marcus Garvey
When you think about those people who are successful and you aspire to be like such as Oprah, Martha Stewart, Donald Trump, Farrah Gray, the late Steve Jobs, Bill Gates or even the power music couple Jay-Z and Beyonce’, what is the common character trait that all of these people posses? The answer…CONFIDENCE!
Each believe, and have a firm trust in not only their talent but also themselves. And because confidence is contagious, we as viewers believe in them simply because that person has a strong belief in themselves.
It’s been stated that the number one reason people never take the leap of faith to do those things they love in life and become who they are destined to be is because of the lack of confidence. You’ve always wanted to quit the corporate life and start your own company but you say you can’t because you don’t have the money to do so. Well, here’s the newsflash, having the lack of money is not the real issue. Having the lack of confidence is.
Many of those moguls listed above did not have the money to start their brands but they definitely possessed the confidence. I still remember Farrah Gray’s story shared on Oprah of how he started selling painted rocks at the age of six and became a young millionaire with other business ventures by age fourteen just because he knew he could. With the quote that began this article, the young Farrah Gray won before he began because of his confidence! It’s time for you to do the same.
Here are 5 ways to Live Confidently NOW.
1. Know who you are. When you know who you are, and are accepting of who you are, you become not easily broken when someone else challenges you to be something different. This I will admit doesn’t happen overnight but I will also admit, once you know who you are it becomes unshakeable. Do this by identifying your strengths and opportunities then learn how to celebrate your strengths in all that you do. If you don’t know what those things are, you can start by doing the simple exercise of listing out five things that you do really well along with the top five things you know and love about yourself.
2. Know the confidence desired, already lives inside of you. Reflect back on moments from early childhood. The times before you became self aware and was told you couldn’t do something… those times are the times you possessed more confidence than you do currently. I reflect back on the days I wanted to climb trees simply because the boys were doing it. Everyday I would climb the tree and everyday I would get higher and higher. When the boys told me I couldn’t do it, I climbed higher to make fun of them. But when my granny told me that was not lady-like, I began to question myself and became more self aware. Remember you already possess the confidence, you just need to re-ignite the fire inside to allow it to show through.
3. Kick fear and take the risk! That’s right…kick fear in the face and just jump. Take the risk now. You will not know the outcome until you actually do it. Assuming is just another way for fear to take control. Taking a risk involves not always feeling safe and that is okay.
4. Become comfortable, being uncomfortable. Embracing the unknown and accepting uncomfortable situations is a key to living confidently. It goes perfectly with #3. You have to accept that you cannot plan everything. You do not know the outcome of all situations and sometimes, you will be challenged and uncomfortable. This is all a part of life. So LIVE! You have to step out of the familiar, predictability of your comfort zone. If you focus on the endpoint and not the process, you become more welcoming of being uncomfortable.
5. Begin and end with a Smile. It’s one of the most simple things in life to do that offers a very large return. Smiling tricks the brain in thinking you are happy and guess what… When you smile, you instantly become happy. It releases endorphins and reduce stress. And it’s the number one seller for any product or service you choose to sell and this includes selling yourself as a brand.
Step out, and live confidently NOW. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow so live boldly today.
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