Confidence is a gift. It’s not something that every one of us is blessed with. Confidence isn’t about being in love with yourself and thinking you’re ‘God’s gift’, it’s about loving who you are, how you look and what you stand for. It’s one of those things that you don’t think about until you don’t have it anymore, and then you realise just how much you need it.

 

A lack of confidence doesn’t just impact how you feel about your appearance, it actually has far wider reaching consequences, or at least it can do. When you begin to dislike who you are and how you look, it impacts every aspect of your life, from your career and relationships to your happiness and wellness.

 

Confidence is crucial in life, there’s no getting away from that fact. Although that may be the case, gaining confidence when you don’t have it is not an easy task. It’s not something that you can simply decide to change, it’s something that takes time, which is something that I know from personal experience.

 

That being said, there are steps that you can take to start giving your self-esteem the boost it needs. Want to start 2019 feeling more content and confident about who you are? Then have a read of the handy hacks below for boosting your self-esteem and becoming happier with who you are.

 

Don’t compare yourself

 

It’s far too easy to compare yourself to others. However, it’s a silly step to take – every single one of us is built differently to the next, and so it’s unrealistic to wish that you looked exactly like someone else.

 

I know it’s far too easy to compare your flaws to other people’s lack of flaws, but this isn’t a healthy habit to get into. The truth is, every single one of us has flaws – even the women that you walking the catwalks for the likes of Channel and D&G – and confidence is about accepting those flaws.

 

One of the best ways to do that is to stop comparing yourself. So what if your best friend is a size 6 and you’re a size 12 – body shape doesn’t define you, or anyone for that matter. Your size and shape doesn’t make you any less of an amazing person, and you need to realise that.

 

Don’t be afraid to make changes

 

People say that self-esteem is about being happy with yourself exactly as you are, and while that is partly true, if there’s something about yourself that’s knocking your confidence again and again, I believe that you should change it.

 

Whether it’s your weight, the size of your nose, or the crookedness of your teeth, you have every right to change something about yourself that you don’t like. Say, for instance, you hate your teeth – maybe they’re wonky or stained, then why not consider fixing the issue by seeing a cosmetic dentist from Glow Dental, for instance.

 

If there’s something about your appearance that you don’t like and you can’t get past, there’s no reason not to change it. If you know that you will be twice as confident and far happier by making a change, then you should take a leap faith.

 

Take care of yourself

 

Various studies have shown that self-confidence is indirectly linked to self-care and that people who make time to take care of themselves and their bodies feel happier and more content about who they are and how they look.

 

On a personal level, I can relate to this as I know that when I’m eating well and going to the gym, I feel far more confident about who I am and how I look, and it’s not just due to being slimmer, it’s about feeling better inside.

 

Make time for self-care and I promise you, you will feel so much better about yourself, and as a result, your confidence will naturally rise.

 

There you have it, a few handy hacks to help you start the new year feeling far happier and more confident.