5 simple habits to improve your confidence.

As I’m sure you know, doing things that are new or that we rarely do requires a lot more effort, motivation, or self-discipline than the things we do by habit.

So if we want to improve our confidence, a great trick is to create simple everyday habits that help us do exactly that.

This is, of course, not a complete substitute for doing important and fundamental confidence-building work, but all of the habits I’ve included in this article will help if you practice them regularly.

1. Daily self-care.

Self-care is the practice of taking care of yourself physically, emotionally, and mentally.

Self-care doesn’t just improve your energy, motivation, and well-being – it also shows your unconscious that you are someone who you think is worth taking care of.

Thinking of yourself in this way, even unconsciously, tends to improve both your confidence and self-esteem in both the short and long term.

So make it a habit to get enough sleep, eat nutritious meals, and engage in activities that bring you joy and relaxation on a regular basis.

2. Spend time in your growth zone.

We’re not always aware of it, but we all have opportunities to step into our growth zone on most days. Typical examples include:

• Trying a new snack or food.
• Speaking up in a meeting.
• Saying no to a request.
• Saying hi to a stranger.
• Telling a joke.
• And more.

And by regularly doing things like these that are slightly outside of your comfort zone, you’ll start to feel confident in your ability to do what you need to do despite discomfort or nerves.

Because every time you do something you feel nervous about doing, you get a little better at stepping outside of your comfort zone. This will help you build confidence in your ability to do what you need to do, regardless of discomfort or nerves. And that kind of confidence is applicable to every single area of your life.

So do your best to safely go into your growth zone every day, even if what you’re doing is small and (seemingly) insignificant. Over time, this will have a significant positive impact on your confidence.

3. Regular exercise creates self-affirming thinking.

Ok, you’re probably tired of people telling you that exercise is important. But unless you’re tired of hearing it because you already exercise regularly, that reaction is likely a defense mechanism that is holding you back from your full potential.

The simple fact is that exercise is not just good for your physical health, but for your mental health as well – your confidence included.

When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which are basically feel-good chemicals. Having these chemicals flowing through your body tends to create more positive and self-affirming thoughts.

Over time, this can lead to more habitual positive thinking about yourself and your abilities.

Even a daily brisk walk or a 15-minute stretching or yoga session in the morning can make a noticeable difference (and there are lots of great apps that can guide you through activities and keep you accountable).

At the very least, start taking the stairs instead of the elevators, get off public transport one stop earlier, or take a few minutes to do some jumping jacks, sit-ups, and push-ups before you get into the shower.

4. Leverage small daily goals.

Regularly setting and achieving small, daily goals – new ones that you normally don’t focus on – can help you feel more accomplished and confident.

Things like making your bed or tidying your kitchen, finally making that phone call you’ve been avoiding, creating a to-do list, or whatever else that you know you can do in a day and that will add a small bit of value to your life will work.

When you achieve these goals, you’ll have little releases of dopamine and a sense of accomplishment, which can boost your confidence significantly, even if the goal itself only took a few minutes to achieve.

Over time, you’ll naturally start to set bigger or more challenging daily goals – usually without even realizing that you’re doing it – which will work wonders for both your confidence and productivity.

5. Learn one new thing every day.

Make it a daily habit to seek out and learn one new piece of information or a minor skill. This could be anything–a historical fact, how an everyday object works, a word in a new language, or a simple recipe.

It’s critical that you find ways to use the new knowledge and skills you acquire, because the key is genuine learning, not just passive consumption.

So don’t just watch a video about how to do something – practice doing it. Don’t just read about new knowledge or information – discuss it, share it, apply it.

Learning new things regularly will make you confident in your ability to learn, grow, and evolve – which means that there will be few things you feel you can’t master if you just have some time to prepare. And that can work wonders for your core confidence.

Your challenge.

If you genuinely want to improve your confidence, pick one of these habits and start today. Don’t wait for “the right time”, don’t think about how or when – just start.

It doesn’t matter that you do it perfectly, that you’re able to stick to it every day, how you feel right now, or anything else. Building confidence is a process. It takes time and effort – not perfection.