Three Ways To Build Stellar Self-confidence That Will Get You Ahead At Work

Written by: Elin Byrén, Executive Contributor

Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.

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Are you on a confidence roller coaster at work?

One day you feel great because a colleague complimented you on a successful deliverable, and the next day you make a small mistake and feel like crap.

The good news is that self-confidence is not something you either have or don't have – it's something that you build over time.

And, because confidence is a vital part of career progression, you’ll want to work on your confidence to get more recognition, opportunities, and promotions. Believing in yourself and being confident in the value you bring will make your manager and other key stakeholders see it too.

Here are three ways you can start to build your self-confidence today.

1. Get clear on your areas of improvement

If you lack self-confidence, you might feel criticized when your manager points out an area of improvement.

But, avoiding your development needs makes you come across as insecure and reluctant to develop. If you are serious about expanding in your role and getting new opportunities you need to both be comfortable with constructive feedback, and have self-awareness of your strengths and your development needs.

So the next time you receive feedback on one of your development areas – thank your manager for the feedback, and discuss what you can do to improve in this area.

2. Speak up

Lack of self-confidence in your job can show up as questioning if your opinion matter, or worrying about how others will perceive what you say.

But the point of speaking up is not to always pitch the perfect solution or have the smartest question. It’s to show that you want to do the best work possible, and that you are invested in finding the best solution going forward.

And, there will always be those who disagree with you, but if you want to advance you need to stand for your opinion even if it’s not the popular one.

If speaking up in big groups makes you feel uncomfortable, start in smaller settings, and when you feel more comfortable – push yourself to speak up in a larger group.

3. Don’t avoid negative emotions.

Somehow, we have been tricked that it’s wrong to feel negative emotions.

While staying focused on the positive is a good intention – not allowing yourself to feel so-called negative emotions makes you avoid uncertain situations where you might feel uncomfortable.

For example, you might consciously, or unconsciously not pursue an opportunity or promotion because you don't want to get disappointed. Consider that if you avoid situations where you might feel uncomfortable – you're keeping yourself from receiving a NO, but you're also keeping yourself from getting the YES you want. So allow yourself to get rejected, you'll learn a lot on the way and you'll eventually get the new role, promotion, or role expansion you want.

Follow these three simple steps and you'll be amazed at what it can lead to.

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Elin Byrén, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Elin Byrén is a Career and mindset coach and the founder and CEO of Careers with Elin. With an M.Sc. Degree and background of 10+ years in the corporate world, she now uses her experience to support women to level up in their careers. Through her proven framework her clients learn the tools and the strategies to advocate for themselves and take charge of their careers, build confidence and clarity in the value they bring, and learn the step-by-step plan to reach their career aspirations. She advocates creating success on your own terms, working smarter and not harder to maximize results, and feeling great in the process.