Feeling Self-Doubt? Here are 6 Tips to Increase Your Confidence

In leadership, confidence is a must. Being able to lead others requires self-belief and courage. But did you know that a whopping 85 percent of people have low-esteem? This issue affects their personal and professional lives, including their careers, their health, their effectiveness in the job and their salaries.

In other words, self-doubt and low self-esteem can keep you from reaching your peak potential, which leaders need to be at every day – showing up and leading strong.

Self-doubt appears to be more common among women, which the reasons why can be discussed at a later time. These traits usually develop in childhood and either exacerbate or diminish with time. But their effects can be detrimental if not corrected. If self-doubt plagues you, check out these tips to boost your confidence and trust yourself more:

Accept Yourself

Self-doubt is part of being human. The one thing you don’t want to do is allow any doubt to define you as a person, or to be the story you keep telling about you as a person, and your ability to do anything you desire.

If you don’t embrace yourself and all that you possess – mistakes and all – then why would you believe others will? Rely on the one person you can – YOU – and turn this into a strength. When used correctly, self-acceptance allows you to be you authentically, quirks and all .

Think of it as a tool that guides your actions, and how you show up every day. If not kept in-check, self-doubt can lead you down a dark path of emotional issues and ineffectiveness in your role.

Know You’re Not Alone

Even the most successful people have doubts, from CEO’s to celebrities. They often question their actions and wonder what the right thing to do is. It happens to the best more than you know.

Take your cue from other successful people who have had to rise above self-doubt at one time or another – if they can overcome, then you can, too.

Get the Facts

Your doubts don’t necessarily reflect the truth. Most times, they mirror your fears and emotional struggles. Think about your achievements and how hard you worked to get where you are today. Be proud of yourself and admire your capabilities.

Whenever you’re in doubt, get the facts straight. Research the problem in question, weigh the pros and cons and ask for a second opinion. Challenge any doubt that arise – do you know it to be absolutely true? Are you willing to let these negatives go? Only you can answer but the choice is yours to make.

Acknowledge Your Strengths

Make a list of things you excel in. Write down your skills and accomplishments. Accept praise from others gracefully and acknowledge your talent.

Celebrate your strengths every single day. Make positive affirmations and remind yourself how much you’ve done so far. Stop thinking of what you could have done better. One suggestion is to write down at least three actions you took during the day – recognizing one of your employees, hearing thank you or I appreciate you, etc. This will show you that you do make a difference every day to lift your esteem.

Develop Self-Trust

The reason people have self-doubt is that they were told by someone (parent, teacher, friend, etc.) that they could not/should not do something, were told it would fail, pointed out a failure in a negative way and the like. These then becomes the story and the fear that makes one doubt if they truly can do what they desire – after all, if an authority figure says it can’t be done who am I to question it?

If you’re doubting yourself, then you don’t trust yourself enough to make a good decision, carry a task through to the end, or even that people like you to want to follow your leadership. Self-trust is the key to overcoming self-doubt, which leads into the last tip to building confidence…..

Define Your Values

Lastly, define your values which you live by daily. Once you do, place your focus on why you value them, letting them drive your actions as they are at the core of your beliefs. Any doubts will fade when you live by, trust, and rely those beliefs to see you through. Living by your values, especially when it is not the popular opinion, will give you the courage and confidence to stand by any decision you make.

Overcoming self-doubt is a lifelong process. It takes practice and consistency to train your brain to push aside any fears or doubts and replace them with positive encouraging words. Stop questioning your own decisions. Don’t waste time over-analyzing – trust your actions and put your plans in motion. Believe you can and you will.