Projecting Confidence – Even if You Don’t Feel It

2021-05-09 ~ adminlife

That old saying, “Fake it ‘til you make it,” has never been more meaningful than when dealing with confidence issues. Confidence is the most important personality trait you can develop in order to better deal with life’s transitions – both personal and professional – and to take risks to ensure your continued success. Some ways to project confidence, even if you don’t feel it, include:

Be optimistic – Do you see the glass as half-empty or half-full? If you see the glass as half-empty, you’re likely not an optimist and could experience feelings of low self-worth and doubts. Seeing the glass as half-full places you in the “optimist” category and shows that you look for opportunity rather than failure.
Don’t take yourself too seriously – When you allow yourself to loosen up and enjoy life, you’re more relaxed in demeanour and most people find that refreshing. Most of us have to deal with stress and intense situations every day, so to be around someone who can relax is a real pleasure and can garner admiration.
Pay attention to others – Making eye contact and listening intently to those you’re engaged with is a must when attempting to project confidence. If you constantly look around the room or up at the ceiling when you’re conversing, you seem less trustworthy and less like someone who demands admiration.
Dress the part – Whatever you want to succeed at in life requires a certain look. Want to rise to a CEO level in your company? Stop dressing in jeans and t-shirts. Show others – with your looks – that you’re ready to step into the position, even if you’re much lower on the ladder.
Watch your language – When you speak, speak clearly and watch your own language to be sure you’re not using buzz words or contradictory language or interject phrases such as “you know…” That’s referred to as “conversational clutter” and should be avoided at all cost.
Accept and give compliments – Accept compliments about your accomplishments gracefully and give compliments to others when warranted. Accepting compliments show that you realize the value in what you’ve done and giving compliments show that you consider yourself a good judge of character.

Projecting a certain amount of confidence, even when you don’t feel it, shows that you’re ready to meet challenges head-on. Sometimes, we don’t yet have the knowledge or skills it takes to perform at the top of the game, but you can project determination and enthusiasm to meet the challenge.

While you can fake confidence, you are still not confident. Sometime this facade will fall and you will be in a worse mental state.

You need to actually build-up your confidence level so that displaying confidence in all situations comes naturally.

Book a “Get to know you call” now

to discuss your existing confidence level and how we can work together to build your confidence level to a naturally higher level.

To your success

Michael

Photo by Daniel Minárik on Unsplash

12 Signs That You’re Doing Better Than You Think

2021-04-11 ~ adminlife

It’s not unusual for a person to think they’re doing worse than they actually are. Some of us are just pessimistic. Progress can also be hard to see sometimes unless you’re looking in the right places for it.

If you feel like you’re working hard with little to show for it, you’re probably mistaken. It’s likely that you’re doing a lot better than you think!

Consider these positive signs:

You learn the lesson that each mistake and failure provide. If you can learn something from every failure and mistake, it won’t take long before you’re incredibly successful.
- Most people repeat their errors over and over, whether it’s overspending or choosing a partner. People have a strong tendency to repeat their behaviours. But you can choose to act differently than you did the last time you were in a similar situation!
You’re clear on what you want. This can be half the battle. You have a huge advantage over the competition if you know what you want. Most people are aimlessly floating through life.
You spend your time wisely. Spend your time well and good things happen. Spend your time poorly and your life will be a train wreck.
- When deciding what you’re going to do next, ask yourself what the best use of your time would be. Then, do it.
You’re making regular progress. Consistent progress is a great sign. Even if you feel like you’re lightyears from your goal, all you need is regular progress. Many people have been dieting for years and haven’t lost a single pound. Even a pound of weight loss each month is meaningful over a period of time.
You’re consistent in your efforts. Successful people put in some work on a daily basis. Success isn’t about working really hard for a day here and there.
- Being consistent in your efforts also means that you’re sticking to your goals. Working for a week on one goal and then changing your mind and working on something else is a path to nowhere.
You’re not alone. There are people that are alone in the world. If you’re not alone, you’re doing better than many others.
You’re optimistic. When you’re optimistic, there’s hope. When you’re optimistic, you’ll take action.
- Conversely, when your expectations are low, you quickly become stuck, because you believe your efforts will be a waste of time.
You’re determined. Commitment is a great sign that you’re going places. Good things happen when you’re determined.
You’re not worried about the opinions of others. If you care too much about what others think, you’ll prefer to play it safe, and you won’t do anything significant. You can leave them and their opinions in the dust behind you!
You have a dry, warm place to sleep. If you’ve ever had to go without this, you know how nice this is. If you don’t have to deal with this situation, then you’re doing better than you think.
You have a job. A steady income is a great thing. Many people either can’t find work or are unable to maintain employment. Even if you’re earning less than you’d like, it’s a lot better than earning nothing at all.
You’re healthy. If you’re basically healthy, you have a huge leg up on a lot of people. Good health is a huge blessing.

Our society is easy in many ways and quite challenging in others. A high priority is placed on success, but there are other things that are also important. Friends, a warm bed, and a job are pretty relevant, too.

If you’re clear on what you’re trying to accomplish, and you’re spending your time wisely, you’re doing quite well. This is true even if the results haven’t revealed themselves yet. Have faith!

Most people are actually doing quite well in their lives but we are surrounded by so many negative things. people and news that we don’t see the positives in the world and in ourselves.

If you can start to put some of the advice in this article into practice, you will be surprised at how well you really are doing in your life.

If you want to take your life to an even higher level, book a “Get to know you” call with me at:

https://calendly.com/michael-coach/15-minute-get-to-know-you

We will talk about where you are now, where you want to be and how you can get there.

To your success

Michael

Photo by Hoang Le on Unsplash

Learning To Cope With Things Out of Our Control

2021-04-05 ~ adminlife

At some point in your life, you’ve no doubt had to deal with a situation that was out of your control. Whether it’s a car accident, financial difficulties, or other challenge, these events cause stress and frustration, which negatively impact your health and mental outlook on life.

Learning how to cope with events you can’t control will help keep you in a positive frame of mind and alleviate your stress.

Consider the Serenity Prayer, written by Reinhold Niebuhr:

“God grant me the serenity

To accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to change the things I can,

And wisdom to know the difference.”

The words of this prayer exemplify the solution to a problem that plagues all of us. Once you’ve come to terms with the fact that you can control only your own actions (and reactions), you can begin to find peace of mind.

What Can You Control?

Worrying about the people or events in your life that you can’t control can cause all kinds of stress-related health problems, such as angina, high blood pressure, and sleeping difficulties.

If you need to feel more in control of your life, focus on those things that you can physically change.

Who you decide to accept as your friends and spend your time with is something you can definitely control. It may not be easy to meet new friends, but the opportunities are plentiful if you look for them.

Being around negative people can drag your attitude down, since you adopt the mood of people around you.
If you have people in your life who aren’t encouraging you to fulfill your potential, find other people to surround yourself with.
Having the support of people who believe in you will propel you toward reaching your lifelong goals.

Live One Day at a Time

When you intentionally consider each day a gift, your struggles don’t seem as dire. While life does deal some bad hands, such as death, divorce, and financial challenges, how you cope during these hardships can make you stronger or break you.

When you purposely feel gratitude for the good moments within each day, you can genuinely start to accept your struggles as a path to a new beginning.

Coping with Financial Difficulties

One of the most stressful situations is coping with financial difficulties. Loss of a job often means having to give up things you’ve worked hard to acquire.

If you’re having a difficult time accepting that you have to cut expenses and give up the comfortable things in life, even temporarily, it helps to remember that it could be worse.
Be grateful for having your home and your health because there are many people in the world who have neither.
Once you know you can be happy with less, you can focus again on achieving your goals.

By accepting that you can’t change some things, you’ll become more powerful in changing the things that you do have control over. You’ll free yourself from the negative thoughts and emotions that can stifle you into sad complacence.

Use these tips to help you cope with things out of your control, and you’ll find peace, joy, and the passion to persevere through all challenges.

Being able to accept that you cannot control everything and that those things out of your control just have to be accepted or ignored moves you one step closer to being in control and empowered.

Book a 45-minute call on my calendar at:

https://calendly.com/michael-coach/focused-program-45-minute

to learn more about building up your empowerment level and to live a better life.

To your success

Michael

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Conquer Your Insecurities to Gain the Confidence and Success You Deserve

2021-03-22 ~ adminlife

Our insecurities often stem from a fear of failure. This could be a good thing if you’re weighing the risk versus reward of doing something that puts you in danger. But more often than not, insecurities just hold you back from having what you want in life.

Insecurities can prevent you from getting the job you want or the promotion you deserve. If you feel like you’re not good enough, you may stop trying. And if you do try, the person responsible for giving you the job or promotion may pick up on your insecurities and offer the position to someone else.

If you’re insecure, it can hurt your relationships as well. If you’re constantly worried that your significant other is cheating on you, or is planning to leave you for someone else, this can put a lot of strain on your relationship.

A lot of individuals have financial insecurities, too. Financial insecurities can prevent you from making an investment that could be worth a lot of money in the future.

Take these steps to gain confidence and conquer your insecurities:

Take an objective look at yourself. Pinpoint some of the things you’re insecure about and consider what you would tell someone else in the same position.

- If you’re insecure about an upcoming job interview or your romantic relationship, consider what advice you’d give to someone in the same situation.

Stop living in fear. Maybe someone else will get the position you want. Maybe that investment won’t work out and you might lose some money. Keep in mind that there’s no reward without risk.

- If you let fear hold you back from trying, you’ll continue to evade success.

Make a list of the things you’re afraid of. Write down the things that make you uncomfortable and why you think they cause you to worry. Review your list and think about whether these are legitimate, rational concerns.

- Most people have a fear of failure and that’s perfectly natural. However, it’s important to avoid letting that fear overwhelm you to the point where it prevents you from going after the things you want.

Focus on past successes. Many times, insecurities stem from a traumatic experience in the past. Find a way to remember the positive experiences you’ve had rather than the negative.

- Maybe your girlfriend cheated on you and you’re worried that it will happen again. Perhaps you had a job interview that went horribly and left you feeling defeated. Whatever the situation, it’s time to move past it.

- Instead of dwelling on the times you’ve failed, focus on instances where you’ve experienced success. This will help you gain confidence and get past your insecurities.

Realize that you’re unable to control others, but you can control yourself. It’s difficult to predict the behaviour of others. Your significant other may decide to break up with you and move onto another relationship. Your boss may decide that you don’t deserve the promotion. All of that isn’t within your control. You can only take ownership of your own actions.

- You can work hard to be the best boyfriend or girlfriend. You can do everything in your power to get that promotion. Focus on the things that you can control and let the cards fall where they may.

When you dwell on your insecurities, you create a self-fulfilling prophecy. You can drive people away in relationships. You could lose a job or promotion because you believe you’re unworthy. Try to implement these strategies to get past your insecurities. It will give you the best chance for success.

When you conquer your insecurities, you grow in your life and start to develop the inner confidence that will get move you forward towards your goals.

It is not easy to do this alone, that is why using a Life Coach can help.

Book a 15-minute call here “Get to know you call”, to talk with me about where you are now and where you want to be and we may be able to work together to help you achieve the best year of your life.

To your success

Michael

Image by John Hain from Pixabay

Unlock Your Potential by Overcoming Your Limitations

2021-03-01 ~ adminlife

Do you put limitations on yourself and then feel like you’re unable to accomplish your goals? A limiting mindset may stem from a difficult childhood, low self-esteem, or past failures.

Despite your specific reason, it all boils down to fear. It could be the fear of rejection or of failing again. It could also be because you’re afraid of not being good enough.

Unlock your potential and overcome your limitations with these tips:

Embrace your limitations. You’ll likely encounter someone smarter, stronger, or better looking during your life. Realize that even if you’re not the best at something, you can still be very successful, as long as you make an effort.

- Avoid letting a fear of inadequacy stop you from trying. It’s okay if you try and fail. Failing to try is the only true failure. Each failure brings you closer to success.

Work a little harder. If you’re less than stellar at something, you can compensate by working even harder.

- Thomas Edison once said, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” Even coming up with a great idea for a new invention is more about hard work than about being brilliant. Lots of people have unique ideas, but it takes someone who’s willing to put in the extra effort to make it successful.
- Avoid letting fear hold you back. Just get to work and hope for the best.

Set goals. Before you get in your car and turn on the ignition, you have a destination in mind. Accomplishing things in life can be the same way. Have a clear understanding of where you want to go and then you can figure out how to get there.

- Set realistic goals, but be willing to step out of your comfort zone. It can be very discouraging if your goals are impossible to achieve. Make your goals challenging, yet attainable.
- If your goals are too easy, you won’t feel a sense of accomplishment or any motivation to push yourself towards them.

Find a coach. Every athlete who succeeds in sports owes a lot of credit to their coaches. Coaches help take players to places they would be unable to get to by themselves. It isn’t only athletes that can benefit from coaching. You can talk to career coaches, life coaches, or someone else who can help you achieve success.
Understand the limitations of your mindset. Sometimes things seem impossible for us, only because that’s what we believe them to be.

- As an example, let’s take the story of Roger Bannister. Roger Bannister is the first person to ever run a mile in less than 4 minutes. He did it on May 6, 1954, and before that day, many believed that his accomplishment wasn’t humanly possible.
- Many gifted athletes had come incredibly close, but nobody did it before Roger Bannister. However, once that barrier was broken it became possible in people’s minds.
- The year after Roger Bannister ran his 4 minute mile, 37 other runners were also able to accomplish the same feat. The year after that, 300 runners were able to run a mile in under 4 minutes.
- It’s not that these runners weren’t physically capable of doing this before. It’s just that all of them now believed it was possible.

Do you have things in your life that are holding you back? If so, it could be because you have set limitations in your mind. Isn’t it time to open your mind and overcome those limitations? Unlock your potential, starting today!

You now have some advice, tips and reflections to help you to believe in your own abilities so that you can keep growing in your life.

If you still think that this is something that you will need help with, you can contact me at michael@coachmichaelw.com

To your success

Michael