Being more confident at work has a number of advantages. You’ll be able to advocate for yourself more easily, be taken seriously by your colleagues, and in many cases, improve your performance.
If you’re looking for tips to boost your workplace confidence, then read on.
Watch The Way You Talk To Yourself
If you’re not careful, it can be easy to fall into a spiral of negative self-talk, and this can seriously damage your confidence at work.
While it’s good to consider your flaws and consider ways you could improve your work, make sure that you keep this constructive and helpful.
When you find yourself thinking negatively, ask if your thoughts are reasonable or if you’re being too harsh on yourself.
Share Ideas With Co-Workers
The idea of speaking up and sharing your ideas with your co-workers may feel intimidating, but the more you do it, the easier it will get. And once your colleagues start to listen to and implement your ideas, your confidence will soar.
Have a few sentence starters on hand to help boost your confidence and get you started. And remember that a rejection of your idea is not automatically a criticism of you.
Ask For Help When You Need It
Nobody is born with innate confidence. Just as with any skill, it needs to be practiced, and there’s no shame in asking someone for guidance.
The trick is to find a mentor - someone who you respect and admire - and ask for their advice and tips. You can also use them as inspiration. Just remember to retain your own identity.
Remember: if you don’t feel it, fake it until you make it.
Look The Part
Humans are primarily visual creatures and, rightly or wrongly, we are all judged on the way that we look and present ourselves. By making sure you’re dressed smartly and look professional at all times, you increase your chances of being taken seriously by your colleagues.
Think of your work outfits as a uniform, and you will soon learn to associate putting these outfits on with confidence.
Acknowledge Your Own Success
Acknowledging and owning your own success can be difficult, especially if this is not a skill that comes naturally to you. However, it’s an important part of feeling more confident in your abilities and achievements.
Learn how to accept compliments and praise with grace, rather than automatically shrugging them off and undermining your own achievements.
Learn From Your Failures
We all have weaknesses and areas we need to improve on. This is nothing to be ashamed of, and working on weaknesses is a key element of growing and evolving.
When you make a mistake, take a look at it from a more detached perspective.
What exactly went wrong? Where was the failure? What would you do differently were you to carry out this task again? By separating yourself from the error, you can view it professionally, and feel confident that you won’t make the same mistake again.
Final Thoughts
Developing more confidence at work doesn't only have the advantage of making you happier. It can also help you to enjoy more successful working relationships, ensure that your voice is heard, and could even get you a raise! With just a few simple changes, you will be feeling confident and in control in no time.
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Thank you for reading our blog!
- Mike Acker
Check out my new book on Public Speaking: Speak with Confidence, published by WILEY.
A breakthrough to develop confidence in speaking, leadership, and life. A follow-up book to my best-selling book, Speak with No Fear