Confidence has got to be one of the most difficult things in the world for a lot of people. Sure, it might sound like something incredibly small and simple, but in reality, it’s something that a lot of people can go their entire lives without being able to fully achieve.

This leads many people to assume that they just have to live with a lack of confidence and that there’s nothing they can do about it.

However, that simply isn’t true. The truth is that confidence can be learned and developed, just like anything else. Which is important because a lack of confidence can have a pretty significant negative impact on your life.

With that in mind, here are three incredibly simple things that you can do to build up your confidence and stop hiding in the shadows all of the time.

Smile!

Most of us know about the idea that smiling can actually make you feel better. It might sound ridiculous to some people, but it really does work! Not only that but people tend to respond much better to you when you smile.

If you smile, then you seem more confident, which changes the way people treat you, which then makes you feel even more confident.

Many people aren’t that confident in their smile because of things like discolored or crooked teeth. If that’s something that’s really standing in the way of your ability to smile then get in touch with somewhere like Family Braces so that you can start flashing those pearly white.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to smile at everyone you pass or that there’s anything wrong with not smiling. But learning to smile when you’re talking to people can make a huge difference to how they perceive you.   

Stand tall

Posture makes such a difference to how you’re perceived and how you feel about yourself that it’s kind of strange that more people don’t think about it.

Sure, we all know the importance of good posture but being able to stand tall can make you feel much more equipped to handle difficult social situations. Not only that but the people around you are more likely to see you as assertive and dominant if you can stand up straight.

Get used to your face

Sadly, most of us have a pretty skewed image of our faces because we are constantly comparing ourselves to images in the media. We look at perfect people on TV and assume that there’s something wrong with us because we don’t look like that.

One of the very best ways to get away from that skewed image is to start looking at yourself more often. Just spend some time in front of the mirror, acknowledging the qualities of your face and getting used to them.

You’re not going to suddenly love yourself right away but getting used to your face and understanding the way that you look really can help you to feel less self-conscious about it.

The other thing that’s great for doing that? Selfies. Don’t worry about what anyone says, snap all the selfies you want!

Of course, doing these things might sound incredibly easy, but in truth, they can often be pretty challenging. It’s okay if you don’t find yourself being able to immediately put these things into practice.

If it takes some time and hard work to achieve that’s alright, and it’s definitely going to be worth it in the long run.