HOW TO INCREASE YOUR CONFIDENCE IQHACKS FOR RE-GAINING CONFIDENCE AFTER LIVING THROUGH TOUGH TIMES I would venture to guess that other entrepreneurs, leaders, and professionals might share some of the same fears that I face. How can I pull this off? Confidence is the cornerstone of leadership. If you don’t believe in yourself, how can others believe in you? When you are clear and driven by your purpose, all those around you will notice, including your clients. Driving your mission with the clarity of purpose will enable you to deliver on the company’s promise with an excellence reflex. When your customers feel that they have been heard and know that you care, they will be loyal and become a raving fan of your brand. Five Ways to Boost Your Confidence IQ1. Push Through Self-Limiting Perceptions  The myth of a great leader being great at everything keeps young leaders stuck. Leadership is about getting things done with other people. The clearer a person is in their leadership purpose, the more compelling they'll be in having an aligned team that thrives in their mission. Take Action Great leaders become legends as a result of focusing on the few things that they are great at and delegating the other stuff. Uncover your truth and gain the clarity of purpose. You will then be able to tap into your deeper strengths so you can push through any past limiting perceptions. 2. Never Confuse Perceptions with the Facts Your perceptions about a person or event may not be based on facts. Our memory does not store information exactly as it’s presented to us. Instead, we extract the gist of the experience based on our perceptions and store it in ways that makes the most sense. That’s why different people witnessing the same event often recall different versions. Your brain has a built-in confirmation bias. That means it stores information that is consistent with your own beliefs, values, and perceptions about yourself. Recognize that your perceptions don’t always provide you with accurate information. For example, if you have low self-esteem, your brain tends to store information that confirms your lack of confidence. That will be all you perceive about a specific event. Take Action Revisit a memory loaded with self-limiting perceptions and try to gain a more accurate perspective on the event. Talk with others that might have different perceptions and consider changing your viewpoint. 3. Think Positive to Overcome Negative Self-Bias We can inherit a lack in confidence from our parents. According to research conducted by Robert Plomin of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College in London, UK believes that confidence is encoded in our genes. His study’s findings are published in the journal Psychological Science. In Plomin’s research he studied 15,000 sets of twins. The students’ self-perceived ability rating was a significant predictor of achievement.
Thinking positively about events and people is a big factor in overcoming your DNA. Focusing on the positive will reduce toxic thoughts that erode self-esteem and confidence. Take Action a. Come up with five positive thoughts to counter every one negative thought. b. Let every positive thought sit for 20 seconds before moving to the next positive thought. c. Label your positive and negative emotions for what they truly are and move on. Do not enter into inner dialogue about the negative emotion, because then it becomes more powerful. 4. Practice Positive Self Talk Talking to yourself can increase self-confidence, make you smarter, improve your memory, help you focus, and even increase athletic performance. The documentary The Human Brain claims we say between 300 to 1,000 words to ourselves per minute. Many professional athletes have a mental image of themselves winning, and they have the positive self-talk to back it up. Take Action Practice positive self-talk; the way you talk to yourself influences your neurobiological response to it. When you say, I am statements like “I express myself with confidence and clarity to others,” you are painting a completed picture of your ideal self. 5. Use Your Critical Thinking Skills Critical thinking is not about thinking more or thinking harder; it’s about thinking better and not solely relying on a gut feeling. Honing your critical thinking skills can open up a lifetime of intellectual curiosity. Curiosity is the foundation of life-long growth. If we remain curious, we remain teachable and our minds and hearts grow larger every day. We can retain our beginner’s mind by always looking forward and discovering new experiences and uncovering new information. Take Action a. Question your belief. Ask yourself: How do I know that the information is accurate? What possible biases could there be? Where did that belief come from? Has that belief caused problems in the past and is it a recurring issue? b. Consider the source. Don’t necessarily take what a person is saying at face value. c. Investigate. Finding the answer is quintessential in critical thinking. Investigating with your gut is a great strategy in being a good leader and a person of confidence. d. Ask questions. Getting a better understanding of others will help you to consider what their bias could be. Comments are closed.
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