Great Self Confidence

...to live the life you want

Is Smiling Good for You?

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For some reason there have been a few articles about smiling recently. We all do it from time to time (don’t we?), but for most of us a smile isn’t our natural – or first choice – expression.

A Smile Will Win Over Anyone?

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One  article I nearly didn’t read was a article entitled “physician job search tips“, which isn’t an arresting title for non physicians.

However, as the author had used a “smilie” to illustrate his “tip seven” it caught my eye:-

“Enthusiasm. Bring an absolutely positive attitude without being too familiar. Negativism is not allowed. Sell yourself. The difference between bragging and self confidence is enthusiasm.
Smile. A genuine heart warming smile can win over anyone…whether you interview for physician jobs or not.”

The difference between bragging (or arrogance?)  and self confidence is enthusiasm? I think there is a lot of truth in that. And the advice, like most  of of the other tips, applies whether you are going for a job interview or going into work at a job you’ve been doing for many years. [Read more…]

Toxic People and Spots

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I’ve started receiving feedback from my newsletter, Self Esteem Review. Since that only appears in my inbox, I feel I need a some way of posting the more significant letters on this blog, so anyone can respond with comments.

So, whilst I’m not too sure how best to work this, I’ve decided to go ahead and post the latest and see what anyone thinks about this.

In This Issue:-

* 8 Toxic Personalities to Avoid
* Do My Spots Look Good on This?
* Quotes of the Day  [Read more…]

Step Outside Your Comfort Zone

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Have You Organized Your Expedition Yet?

de3If you search Google for “self confidence” you will often come across articles about children gaining confidence by participating in various activities, as diverse as karate, ballet or magic. One of my favourite posts,  “How to Build Self Confidence Through Activity” discusses this issue.  I did express concern that the amount of practice and skill required to do some activities (ballet, karate) well may make them counter productive – especially when aimed at children.

However, the post and my general attitude to activity (especially as an Occupational Therapist!) as a tool to build self confidence is very positive. I had a chance to reflect on this last week when my daughter received her Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Gold Award at an elaborate ceremony in London.

The DofE  has been going over 50 years and over 4 million young people have completed either the bronze, silver or gold award. The purpose is:-

DofE programmes help young people develop into fully rounded and responsible individuals.  Participants will see new talents and skills develop and emotional maturity blossom whilst also building their fitness and initiative.

At the ceremony the expression “build self confidence” came up on a few occasions; from a recent survey 85% of gold award holders reported increased self confidence. [Read more…]

Using Pictures to Solve Problems

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grave1Next week I am due to accompany my eldest daughter to Buckingham Palace where she will receive her Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award – from the “Duke” himself. Without going into detail about the award itself, its a great achievement and a boost for my self esteem and self confidence, let alone hers!

It goes without saying that this is a smart rather than casual dress event. So with that in mind my wife got me to try out my suit. I’m fortunate in not having to wear a suit to work, as I did in those far off days when I worked for a bank.

To my surprise, my one suit has mysteriously shrunk since I last wore it.  Something about clothes you don’t wear often – for some reason I still keep the suit I wore for my wedding, nearly 24 years ago. The trousers on that one have “shrunk” so much they can hardly go above my knees!

Joking apart, such events do remind me that I’m gradually getting larger, especially around the waist.  [Read more…]

Does it matter what you look like?

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An obese human male.I recently came across this article – The Best Way to Gain Confidence – where the author (Steve Hill)  briefly describes his attempt and success at gaining self confidence and overcoming low self esteem. He outlined his problem thus:-

I had a speech impediment, commonly referred to as a stutter or stammer. I was desperate, for some unknown reason, to be liked and was basically paranoid about what other people thought of me. I had a bald patch on my head and I am also quite short in height in comparison to the average male. I was also over-weight.

Steve goes into detail about his efforts to lose weight and overcome his stutter. He somewhat breezes over his paranoia and negative thinking…

I had to learn how to become a far more care-free person and to accept that not everyone will like me. I had to become a positive thinker and to ignore the negative voices in my head.

…not exactly explaining how he achieved this!

But what fascinated me was his dealing with his lack of height and his bald patch:-

I unfortunately had to accept my lack of height and also the fact that I would have a bald patch on my head for the rest of my life as there was nothing that I could do to change them.

There was nothing I could do to change them. So Steve [Read more…]