30 Psychological Tips To Look And Feel More Confident

1. Practice positive affirmations

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Positive affirmations can be simple, positive statements. They can be as small or as big as you want to make them. But practice this every day to really make yourself believe them. For example, 'I am enough', and 'I am loved', affirmations like this every single day will start to have a positive impact on your mental effect which will then show up as confidence on the outside!

2. Have a good posture

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Having a good posture may be physical, but it has a huge psychological impact. When you are slouched it automatically makes you feel less confident, more withdrawn, and less proud of yourself. So not only does this show to other people you also subconsciously feel it. Have good posture and people will automatically sense (as will you feel) that you're a confident person!

3. Make eye contact

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Eye contact is a massive sign of confidence. When you cannot meet someone's eyes it is often because internally you feel shy or insecure or have some kind of negative emotion. Again, as soon as you start to hold your eye contact it will psychologically make you look more confident because you can match someone's gaze without having to shy away, and you'll feel more empowered too!

4. Journal

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Journaling has become such a huge craze at the moment and it does not seem to be going away and this is because it actually has huge psychological benefits. When you feel good, you look good, And so when you start journaling you can deal with your emotions better which will then translate to your external appearance making you look happier and more confident!

5. Meditate

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Meditation is one of the tried and tested practices to help us mentally and it has been going on for centuries and centuries. There are mindful techniques that allow you to focus on your psychological well-being which in turn will radiate through to your external body and help you look a lot more confident and positive in yourself. Internal practices are even more effective.

6. Dress in a way that makes you feel good

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The key is to wear what makes YOU feel good, not what you think you should wear, what you think is trendy right now but what you really feel good in. When we dress how we want to dress and we love the outfit that we've chosen, it's less about how we look wearing the outfit but the fact that we feel SO much more confident and happy whilst wearing it.

7. Have time for self-care

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Self-care is so important. Compare how you feel when you're rushed off your feet with not a single bit of time for yourself or your own personal care. Compare it to when you've taken time for yourself to have a bath, do a face mask, and do some skin care. You feel like million dollars, not because of the face mask, but because you feel better about yourself and this added confidence is visible!

8. List 3 things you're grateful for

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One very effective way to look and feel more positive is to tell yourself or preferably write down three things that you are grateful for every single day. When you wake up, take 5 minutes for this mindful practice and it truly will make a difference to not only your day but how you feel within yourself! Soon you'll be looking and feeling way more confident.

9. Set small goals

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Sometimes our confidence dips when we feel that we aren't reaching goals. But daily goals can be super small and simple. Set yourself some achievable tasks for the day so that you can complete them, tick them off, and feel good about yourself! You'll start to feel as though you are productive and successful which will massively help your confidence.

10. Smile

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Smile! It's so simple but there isn't much of a more effective psychological solution to feeling AND looking more confident. When you smile, it triggers reactions in your brain so that you really do feel more happy - even if the smile wasn't initially real. Then, when people see someone that is smiling they believe that that person is happy and confident!

11. Quit comparing yourself

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Comparison is the number one way to make you feel terrible. Comparison is something we are all guilty of at times, but as soon as you make a conscious effort not to compare yourself to another person you'll start to feel so much more confident. And why should we be comparing our unique selves to somebody else? Just to put ourselves down? No, thank you!

12. Accept compliments

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Compliments can be hard to accept from someone because we may feel slightly embarrassed and often our first response is 'Oh no I'm not' or something else equally as self-deprecating. But why do we do this? If we accept the compliment and actually believe it we will start to feel a lot better. This person is saying it because they do truly believe it and so should you!

13. Speak clearly and slowly

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Speaking mumbles and quickly is something we often do when we're feeling shy, embarrassed, or insecure. Whereas someone who speaks clearly and slowly comes across as somebody confident. But as soon as you start trying this trick, you'll feel more confident. Psychologically we feel a certain way and our actions make us feel it more. But if we act confident despite not feeling it, our mind will start to feel and act confident.

14. Practice daily deep breathing

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Who knew that something as simple as breathing deeply could have such positive effects on you? Deep breathing is an age-old technique but it has recently come to light just how good it can be for someone to do it every single day. Psychologically it will make you feel calmer and more peaceful which will then help you achieve and feel a confident look.

15. Be present

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What does being present at the moment have to do with psychologically looking and feeling more confident? A lot, actually. Being present means that you are focused on the here and now, you aren't dwelling on the past and you're not anxiously thinking about the future. It's a crucial thing to learn and you'll feel so much more confident because you are living in the present.

16. Know what flatters your body shape

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Sometimes our psychological thoughts are affected by the fact that we don't feel that we know how to style ourselves to the best of our ability. What suits us? What flatters my body shape? Doing some research and seeking some advice isn't about changing your look, it's about helping you feel that you are dressing in a  way that makes you feel more confident!

17. Help people

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Helping people just makes us feel good on the inside. It gives you an incomparable feeling when you help someone, there's nothing quite like it. As soon as we nourish our souls by knowing we have helped someone, that gives us a feeling of confidence because we know we're a good person. And as soon as you know that it is portrayed on the outside. Knowing you're a good person is one of the most powerful forms of confidence.

18. Be confident in your decisions

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Sometimes it's super hard to know whether we're going down the right patch or choosing the right way for ourselves. Even small day-to-day decisions can leave us wondering if we did the right thing. But just know that you are where you're meant to be and be confident in owning your decisions. Be proud of who you are and this will soon start to take a hold and make you feel good on the inside and out.

19. Have daily time in nature

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There's not much of a more powerful form of relaxation and mental detox than spending time immersed in nature. Take yourself for a daily stroll alone, with your dog or someone you feel peaceful with, somewhere completely surrounded by nature and you WILL feel better for it. Psychologically you'll start to feel good which will help you look good naturally by default!

20. Look at yourself in the mirror and don't allow yourself to say negative things

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Sometimes we get into a bad habit of looking into the mirror and only seeing what we feel self-conscious about. We look at ourselves and think 'I don't like my....' I wish my....'. But we need to stop this! It's damaging psychologically for our confidence and we will look a lot less confident for it too. Instead, look in the mirror and list what you LIKE. Don't look for the flaws.

21. Surround yourself with people who make you feel good

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As we go through life sadly we don't only meet people who make us feel good. You'll probably meet those people throughout your life who make you feel bad in some kind of way, whether that is because they make you feel drained or because they make you feel less confident. This isn't good, be aware of this and surround yourself with people who boost you up and make you feel confident.

22. Don't follow accounts on social media that make you feel bad

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Who else has been sucked down the rabbit hole of scrolling more and more past people who make us feel inadequate about ourselves, Scrolling and feeling worse with every picture or video we see. This isn't right. We should be doing to opposite, looking at posts that boost us up and make us feel positive! It will have more of an effect on you than you realize!

23. Take up some new hobbies

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Psychologically feeling confidence is the core to true confidence. It comes from the inside and works outwards, not the other way around. Hobbies are such a good way to boost your confidence mentally as you are engrossed in something you love and meeting like-minded people. It's also good to do something just for yourself. Psychologically, you'll start to notice a difference!

24. Have solo dates

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This is a similar thing to solo dating. Even if you have loads of friends or a partner or family, taking yourself on 'solo dates' simply means going out and doing something alone that YOU love, completely for you at your own leisure with your own agenda. It's also such a good way to boost your confidence and you'll look so confident for doing it too!

25. Start exercise for mental health gains

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Exercising is SO important for people, yes for physical health, but also massively for mental health! Exercise can completely change your mindset and take a bad and negative day to a very positive one. The chemicals it releases in your body fight stress and they will psychologically make you feel, and therefore look happier and more confident as a result.

26. Accept your 'flaws'

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So what are 'flaws'? Because they don't actually exist. Flaws aren't real, they are a comparison to something else which has been deemed more 'perfect'. But this is a complete fabrication because it's a set of ideals that have been placed on us by society. You don't have to listen to this OR see your 'flaws' as anything other than what makes you you, no better or worse than someone else.

27. Compliment other people

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People who are not secure in themselves find it very difficult to spread as much positivity and compliments to other people. But you automatically think someone's complimentary is very secure in themselves and they feel confident enough to celebrate someone else too. It also makes you feel good for making someone else feel good. So compliment people more!

28. Celebrate your wins

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Celebrate yourself don't be afraid to brush off your accomplishments as 'nothing' because you have a lot of humility and also embarrassment about people making a fuss over you. Don't brush it aside like it's nothing, celebrate yourself and be proud of your wins. Mentally it's super important, according to your strengths and therefore feeling confident because of it.

29. Walk with your head help up high

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Walking with your head up high instantly makes people look at you subconsciously and believe that you're a confident person. People who feel insecure or shy will naturally want to make themselves appear smaller and less noticeable so they will dip their heads or hunch their shoulders. Psychologically walking with your head high makes you also subconsciously feel more confident too!

30. Speak to people about your negative thoughts

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Don't bottle up your negative thoughts - how many times are we told not to keep things to ourselves but to talk and to share - confide in someone! This advice is constantly told to us and it's because it truly helps. It also makes you feel more confident about how you feel and who you are. And, you'll feel lighter! All of these things will help you feel good AND look good.