Workplace Confidence
Confidence at Work: Strategies for building Courage and Competence in the Workplace
Do you struggle with confidence at work, find it difficult to be yourself, or feel like the oddball? Don’t worry, you aren’t alone and this is a very common problem in the workplace.
First of all, remember that wherever you are in the world, you bring your mindset and beliefs with you. How you perceive yourself will have a direct impact on your performance and your communication.
Here are some strategies to help you to build confidence in the workplace, be respected by your boss and coworkers, and become more competent with your job.
Condition Confidence Daily
Studies show that human beings have the power to change their brain’s biochemistry in a way that affects thoughts and behaviors. This is incredible news because it means that scientifically, any human being on Earth can take on whatever belief or behavior that they want.
The reason that you lack confidence in the workplace is simple – you’ve got weak confidence muscles! The only difference between you and someone confident is your brain's biochemistry.
How do you condition confidence every day? You access your inner state of confidence every time that you change your focus, physiology, and language. By conditioning those three components, you create confidence. Here are the three components of your emotional triad in more detail:
Physiology
The fastest way to change how you feel is through your physiology. The way that you use your body has a significant impact on your thoughts. As the adage says, “Fake it til you make it”.
Ask yourself, “How would I stand, walk, and breathe if I were confident?”. Use your body and act the part of a confident person. This may feel strange, to begin with, but you’ll get used to it. After several weeks or months, you won’t even have to think about it. It’ll be a part of who you are.
Have fun with this process! If you feel like an imposter, that’s ok because your brain isn’t used to you acting that way.
Focus
“What you focus on, you feel”. When you’re doubting yourself, it is because of the mental pictures that you are focusing on in your head. You may not even be aware of your self-image, so start to be mindful of how you see yourself inside your mind.
Make it a practice to visualize yourself as being the confidence-type that you wish to be. With enough repetition and practice, your mental pictures will act as commands to your brain and nervous system. Whatever you visualize yourself as, with enough strength and repetition, will become your reality.
Language
The words that you say inside and outside of your head have a massive impact on the way that you feel about yourself. Most of us have no idea that we are down talking ourselves throughout the day!
Whatever you tell yourself enough times, you will eventually believe.
Use empowering phrases every day and motivate yourself. One phrase that Brian Tracy recommends that you say to yourself at least 50 times throughout the day is “I can do it!”.
Just telling yourself that simple little phrase every day, over several months, will completely transform your thinking.
Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway!
In addition to conditioning the state of confidence every day, you should also make it a practice to face your fears both inside and outside the workplace. Perhaps you struggle to talk to your intimidating boss or you find certain coworkers to be challenging to work with.
The only way to kill fear is to face it. By facing a fear enough times, you’ll eventually become numb to it. You will have gained references that what you were afraid of wasn’t as harmful as you thought.
Remember the acronym for F.E.A.R. – False Evidence Appearing Real.
Recap
To experience confidence in the workplace everyday, start making it a daily practice to condition confidence, and create awareness inside your mind. Throughout the day, start becoming mindful of your physiology, focus, and language. Act out the part of a confident person, imagine yourself as being the confident person that you desire to be, and give yourself daily encouragement through words.
Also, create little challenges for yourself every day to face your fears. It doesn’t have to be horrifying; take baby steps. Challenge yourself to be just a little bit more assertive at work or speak up a little louder to your boss. Have fun with these little challenges and build them up. Over time, you’ll have conquered situations that used to terrify you.