Confidence is Key

There are many things that make up who you are. Your character includes values, morals, personality and confidence. Confidence plays a key role in who you are, how you present yourself, as well as how other's see you. Here are a few tips and suggestions on how to be you, at your best.

When we talk about a first impression, appearance plays a huge role. However, your appearance does not only include your outward appearance, but your inner self as well. Nothing can be changed from the outside. You have to first start on the inside to change it. Being at peace with who you are is the first step in a positive appearance. Confidence is key.

Make a list of what you perceive as negative attributes of yourself such as the things you have often wished you could change about yourself. Maybe you are too quick to judge another person based simply on appearance. Maybe you find humor in things at the wrong time, causing others to be uncomfortable. Maybe you are too out-spoken at times. When you're finished with this list, walk to your kitchen, and throw it in the garbage can. From this point forward, everything that you have written on that piece of paper becomes irrelevant to who you are. You are going to fix the things you did not like about yourself and replace those things with positive attributes.

Now, let's start a new list. Number a piece of paper from one to ten. List the things that make you unique in a positive way. Maybe you smile often, which in turn, always seems to brighten someone else's day. Maybe you have more patience than most people, which makes you very capable of handling high-stress situations. When you have finished your list, memorize it. Keep in mind everything that is on that list, so that you can mentally remind yourself that you have many great qualities. Also remember, most people think less of themselves than other people do. This may sound very opposite to the message we are trying to display here. However, it is very true. Maybe you do not think your smile is very addicting. But, there is someone out there that looks forward to seeing that smiling face of yours more than you think. Keeping that in mind, look over your list of positive attributes. Someone that loves you will look at that list and wonder why you stopped at ten.

In time, your inner appearance will begin to reflect in your outward appearance. You will begin to hold your head up as you walk. Your arms will swing freely as you walk. Have you ever noticed that someone with a low self-esteem will often walk with their hands in their pockets, or otherwise stationary? Think about major beauty pageants. The girls enter the stage and their arms are in perfect unison with their legs. Their head is held high and their stride seems to be a mile long. Now, think about the same girls in that pageant. If they slowly stepped onto the stage, their eyes pointed down, their arms stiff, and they took very short strides. Suddenly, those same confident girls seem sad, lonely, and unsure of themselves. How you perceive yourself, is how others will perceive you, only more.

If you will notice, we have only just talked about your inner strengths. Automatically, that has morphed into your outward appearance. You are more confident about your positive attributes, thus making your outward appearance seem confident and certain of yourself. Congratulations on the start of a new you!