Real, Practical Ways To Build Self-Confidence & Empowerment

It’s easy to fall into platitude territory when trying to focus on our self-confidence. After all, a pretty Instagram quote or a nice moral feel-good quote can certainly give us a pep in our step, and remind us to be our best selves from day to day. But sometimes, we need more than that, or at least we need to hear insights that hold real timelessness.

Now, the first thing to remember is that to be self-confident and to feel empowered, you don’t have to ask anyone’s permission to do it. But we know how feelings go, they can’t always be commanded, even if “faking it til we make it” can hold some success.

It begs the question - are there many real, practical methods of building self-confidence? If so, what would that look like? In this post, we’ll determine a few practices you can consider, and hopefully integrate into your self-care and self-development schedule for the V2 version of you.

Empower Your Daily Schedule

Of course, your life doesn’t have to follow the same flow as a Microsoft Teams calendar, but it can be empowering to find a routine that works for you, and to embed self-care and time for your own hobbies and social life within that. This way, you can optimize your energies from day to day, avoid burnout, and stay productive at the same time.

For example, perhaps now and again, you’ll book off a Monday so that you can enjoy a three day weekend to decompress, write, and get involved in your hobbies. It might be that you work on trying to get a consistent bedtime going, so you can wake up with the most energy for your artistic and creative pursuits. Or, as someone who might enjoy the nightlife and the underground arts scene, that you focus on those days of recovery where you can rest from all that action and still keep your health in good condition. 

A daily schedule is not a limiter, but a means to get the most out of your time, and you can feel so much better if you achieve that.

Learn Self-Defense

It’s a tough world out there, and unfortunately, one day you might have to defend yourself or manage a conflict in the safest way possible. It can be important, then, to attend martial arts classes. Not only can this help you grow confidence and a sense of pride in your self-control, but you can learn real lessons, the foremost being how to get out of dangerous situations, as all martial arts instructors teach you how to avoid fights before learning how to defend yourself in one.

Self-defense can help you feel more secure in yourself, will enable you to be more observant in your day to day, and is a fun exercise program and physical discipline to get involved in. It’s similar to dance, but with more punch (pun intended). Join a session now, and watch your confidence grow.

Volunteer To Help Causes You Care About

There’s nothing that feels better than feeling like you’re making a difference. It’s what we crave deep down, after all. Unfortunately, it can feel like there are limited avenues of achieving that in modern life. After all, all the nations have been founded, all of the systems of our society have been designed. But is that true?

After all, society is a work in progress, as is culture, as is how you relate to both of those things. Improvements and ethical work can always be focused on, meaning that putting your own weight into either can make a big difference to the world around you, and your sense of wellbeing. No matter if that’s focusing on activism for a cause you care about, doing your best to make a difference, or just volunteering when you can, an approach such as this can make a profound difference over time.

Express Yourself With Clarity

Expressing yourself isn’t just a nice luxury to have, but a very real need you may need to take part in. When you can express who you are without apology, you feel better, and more present, and you also begin to understand yourself more capably.
This might include expressing yourself through what you wear, writing a journal to get your thoughts out each day, or even painting, dancing, making short films, or singing. Having the room to showcase your inmost thoughts or attitudes and to share that with the world (or even just yourself) builds confidence, and it helps you avoid bottling up that vibrant person you really are. Even if you just decide to launch a blog you won’t expect anyone to read, it may help your sense of wellbeing.

Challenge Yourself To Something You’d Otherwise Avoid

It’s always good to focus on bettering yourself as and when you can, that is when you’re not so busy with your responsibilities to do so. Unfortunately, staying in our comfort zone is not a good place to do that. It’s good to get out there from time to time, and try to pursue a hobby or habit that you’re not entirely comfortable with, but are interested in.

It might be that you’ve always wondered what it’s like to take up salsa dancing. Perhaps you could go with a friend for fun. Maybe you want to learn how to sing so you can belt out your favorite songs, but you don’t have a space to do that. Paying for singing lessons could be a good way forward, or simply practicing in your bedroom could be a good start for that too. When you actively pursue those engagements that make you feel a little nervous, you begin to learn that artificial constraints are actually just illusions. This way, you become more in tune with who you are and why you deserve to express yourself, and growth becomes a natural habit as opposed to a chore.

With this advice, you’re sure to take part in real, practical efforts that help you empower your sense of self and build self-confidence.