Wednesday, 11 February 2015

6 Steps for Self confidence and Self Esteem.


6 Steps for Self Confidence and Self Esteem

Grace is the absence of the Unnecessary 
                                                   - unknown -



Do you feel at sometimes that you are not good enough at your work, at your business, at your relationship .


How to target low self-esteem or low self-confidence.

Getting over low self-esteem is easier said than done.

Let’s define Self-confidence: Self-confidence is the ability or the belief to believe in yourself, to accomplish any task, no matter the odds, no matter the difficulty, no matter the adversity. The belief that you can accomplished it, is self-confidence.

Firstly people do not realize that they need help. Secondly, if they do, they do not know where to go for help. A lot of people have advice and there are many articles present online but they fail to address the real issues that lead towards low self-esteem.

Many articles say to take care of your personal hygiene or love yourself or make a list of things that you love about yourself to build self-esteem. However, these tips will hardly ever solve deeply rooted problems in self-confidence.

I have a more scientific solution to the problem and what psychological treatments for this issue can be and the neuroscience behind it.

1.    Repetition, Repetition,  Repetition

Malcom Gladwell calls it, the 10,000-hour rule. There's no magic button. I never could speak in front of 2 people let alone any group. I was a chronic stammerer but then on Jan 1 2014, I spoke to more than 5000 people for 20 minutes without any fear. People had tears in their eyes. That was the impact. People who laughed at my stammer previously came and congratulated me. I have featured in a Melbourne Local TV channel. I am now considered a great orator by my peers. How did I do it? It took me 4 years. I joined toastmasters. Practiced Repetition, Repetition, Repetition. That’s the only secret. The problem with repetition is how many of us bail after the first bit of failure? How many of us bail after the first bit of adversity? Jack Canfield and Victor Hansen of the Chicken Soup for the Soul best seller got rejected 113 times before they got their first break to become the New York Best Seller selling more than 10 million copies.

2.    Live in the present

A factor that may cause low self-esteem is the 'dorsolateral prefrontal cortex' which is like our inner critic. When the inner critical self goes into overdrive, every action is questioned by us and this doubting leads to low confidence and low self-esteem. High confidence means to not constantly question your decisions and actions.

Being in control of this dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in social gatherings will allow you to be more 'in the moment'. Being in control will make you charismatic and this will lead you to have a positive social experience.

Your inner critic can be shut down through meditation that helps you to learn mental discipline to stay focused on the present. If you do not meditate, then you should focus on the present and react in the moment. Do not think and ponder over what you will say and try to listen. The more you will engage with your surroundings, the less dorsolateral prefrontal cortex will control you.

3. Overcoming Limiting Beliefs: From reading thousands of comments and emails, and talking to readers, family, and friends, I've learned that there is something very central to how we construct our beliefs -- our perception of our capabilities. Limiting beliefs, like thinking that you can't, won't, mustn't, shouldn't, couldn't, wouldn't be or do something is based on what you perceive your capabilities to be, and further limits your perception of your capabilities and drags down your self-image. And you act accordingly by making choices limited to your perceived capability, which translates to limited experiences and generating limited results that reflect the limitations that you've imposed upon yourself. For example, if you believe all relationships fail, what you're really saying is that you don't believe that you could be in a lasting relationship.

Each belief you have is tied to other beliefs that you hold, and they all feed into each other, either complimenting or undermining and limiting. The more you tell yourself that you're not this and you can't do that, the more that you channel superpowers that you don't possess -- the ability to mind bend people-and influence and control their feelings and behavior by being pleasing or even forceful, the more you cripple your confidence, worth, and value.

Understanding, re-evaluating, and re-positioning your belief system involves gaining a more accurate sense of self.

Are you all of the things you say about yourself?

You think it's fair and reasonable to base your self-image on an outdated view of yourself without taking into account what you've done since then? Isn't it unfair to think that you cannot change or evolve?

A great litmus test for whether you have an inaccurate self-image, is to think about the way you respond to compliments and basically anything that isn't in-line with your beliefs? Do you say thanks to a compliment or are you mistrustful of it and knock it back? Or are you comfortable with just hearing or seeing something that supports your mindset?

Until you have full understanding of what your beliefs are, you will remain unconscious, which means you will act in ways that are not in-line with your values, your personal beliefs on makes you feel a whole range of emotions, and your true likes and dislikes. You will do things that undermine your efforts, relationships, and happiness. You will limit yourself, claiming that external forces beyond your control that are what's limiting you.

Where do you limit yourself?

Try to come up with 2-3 examples of when you believed that you wouldn't be able to do something and yet you did. Think about the negative things that you claim about you-- can you think of an example in your life that contradicts this? For instance, one reader called herself "weak." But when she told me about the various things that she'd done in the last six months alone, it became clear that her self-image did not reflect the reality of how strong she truly is.

Food for the thought: Are you forgetting to internalize your accomplishments and achievements?

4. Champion Declarations or Affirmations.  Affirmations help purify our thoughts and restructure the dynamic of our brains so that we truly begin to think nothing is impossible. The word affirmation comes from the Latin affirmare, originally meaning "to make steady, strengthen." Muhammad Ali, what was his self-affirmation?  “I am the greatest!. Nelson Mandela’s affirmation was “I am the captain of my ship and the master of my fate”. If I don't say it, if I don't believe it, no one else will. Affirmations help in reprogramming yourself away  from the self talk going on inside your head. 
Affirmations do indeed strengthen us by helping us believe in the potential of an action we desire to manifest. When we verbally affirm our dreams and ambitions, we are instantly empowered with a deep sense of reassurance that our wishful words will become reality.


5. Celebrate your success. Note down all your success. Read it aloud whenever you have self-doubt. This will keep you going.


6. Work Out Working out really helps to boost your self-confidence as looking good makes you feel good about yourself also. Moreover, exercise and work out releases more hormones and neurotransmitters that affect the brain positively. Exercising releases endorphins that are natural antidepressants and help to elevate your mood and confidence drastically. More muscle mass also helps your body produce more testosterone that makes you more focused and more confident. If any of you is like a "wallflower", they should try adding muscle mass to their bodies to help them become more charismatic.






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