I have experienced self-confidence holding me back from taking opportunities that came my way because I didn’t believe I could handle them. I used to shy away from public speaking or sharing my knowledge on something because I felt I would make a mistake that people will never forget.

Till I realized that, I was just limiting my abilities with these excuses, then I decided to take conscious effort towards building my self-confidence. You have to be patient with yourself while building your confidence and give room for growth because, on this beautiful journey, you will discover some of the things about yourself you didn’t even know before.
You can read a little more about my story here

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Let’s chat 💭: Ever missed out on an opportunity because you didn’t think you were capable?⁣ ⁣ Trust me sis you’re not alone!⁣ ⁣ For the longest time, I’ve been scared to teach on any subject matter.⁣ I used to shy away so much from sharing on any topic because I was scared – AFRAID that I’ll say something stupid that no one would ever forget.⁣ ⁣ The interesting thing was while sharing this issue with past managers and friends, I realized that one of the reasons this happened was because I wasn’t really confident in my self.⁣ ⁣ I went on a journey to build he confidence – tbh I’m still on that journey as I’m not where I want to be yet.⁣ ⁣ On that note, my theme for this month is #SelfConfidence and I’ll be sharing tips on how to level up with this over the next few weeks.⁣ ⁣ If you’ll be joining me on this challenge, drop a 🤎⁣ ⁣ #valerieegbuniwe #valeriemusings #contentcreator #lagosliving #diariesofanaijaadult #selfconfidenceiskey #desireeiyama

A post shared by Arie🇳🇬- Digital Creator (@valerieegbuniwe) on Mar 4, 2020 at 9:36am PST

Tips to Build Self Confidence

Believe In Yourself: 

Most times when an opportunity crosses your way, you begin to question your ability to deliver due to imposter syndrome. What imposter syndrome does is that it makes you feel that you can not handle things you have worked hard for or you don’t deserve the opportunity that presented itself, but  I want you to believe that every opportunity that comes your way does so because you have the ability to do it. Also if an opportunity comes your way and you don’t know how to handle it, feel free to ask questions, do your research, try to learn something new, and put in your best because someone out there believes you can handle It.

Get Comfortable Speaking About Your Achievements: 

Most times we feel that speaking about our wins or achievements makes us proud but honestly, if you actually did those things then you aren’t being proud or boastful, you worked so hard and put in the effort for it. I personally struggled with this at some point in my life. Whenever someone asked me about my achievements, I would stall before I talk about something I  worked so hard for.  you need to overcome this feeling and get comfortable speaking about your wins because speaking about your achievement will make you confident in yourself.

If you've been held back on your journey because of how you see yourself, these 5 tips would help you work on your self-confidence and begin to see the changes you desire Click To Tweet

Understand Your Strengths: 

We all know our strengths and weaknesses. we know the things that we excel in and those we struggle with But when you put in all your energy in the task you are not so good at, you begin to struggle and question your ability. So it’s important to understand your strength and focus on it. Even if you have an area of weakness that you want to develop, don’t dwell so much on it that you begin to doubt yourself, focus on your strength and the more you do that the more you begin to feel confident.

Express Yourself:

 There is this satisfaction you get when you share your knowledge on something and people actually learn from you. For the longest time, I battled with sharing my knowledge on topics I was good at but when I started sharing and discovered that people actually learnt from me, that boosted my confidence and made me realize that I was just limiting myself. You need to get comfortable with speaking and expressing yourself, although this would seem difficult at the beginning but the more you share and people learn, the more you improve. 

Exercise 

You can get a certain level of confidence from exercising regularly. Exercise helps to boost the circulation of blood in your body making you feel energized. There was a time in my life when I would always feel tired and weak. This affected the way I saw and felt about myself but since I started exercising my body regularly I started feeling a lot better about myself. Little exercise around the house daily will make a difference. I know this might sound cheesy but it actually worked for me and I think you should try it.

Lastly, it’s important to surround yourself with people who encourage and support you. People who speak positively to you and make you feel good about yourself because the way people around you talk about you can help boost your confidence 

@Valerieegbuniwe

I really hope you find this helpful because building your confidence early enough will help kick start your career. 

Feel free to comment and share tips that helped you build self-confidence.

Love and light,

Valerie🤎