Boost your confidence with these assertiveness tips

Assertiveness and confidence often go hand-in-hand; the person who struggles with their confidence levels also tends to be the person who is quite timid too. This can play havoc in the business arena, as it stops them putting themselves forward for new contracts and promoting themselves and their services to new clients.

This leads many to spend time working on their confidence levels and this can take time. But if assertiveness and confidence go hand-in-hand – why not implement some quick assertiveness tips into your daily practice, in order to immediately start improving your confidence levels?

Here are some quick and easy tips you can implement, in order to improve your assertiveness and, as a result, also boost your confidence too.

Tip #1: Be clear on what you want

Before you go into any situation, be clear in your own mind, what you want the outcome to be. Do you want that person to become a new client? Maybe you want a conflict to be resolved and settled, for the mutual benefit of all involved? Visualise how you see the end result panning out for you, imagine how it will feel to have that result and see how it can benefit all parties.

Tip #2: Watch your body language

When you were imaging that perfect end result, how was your posture? I’m guessing you were relaxed, with your shoulders down, arms by your side, holding your head up and a smile on your face. Remember that pose, because when you’re asking for what you want – you want your body language to reflect that too, so take a pose! It’s no good keeping your head down and arms folded across your chest – that posture will just come across as timid, shy and defeated.

Tip #3: Watch your tone and volume

Speak clearly and firmly – avoid mumbling and rushing over your words. It will help if you take a steadying slow deep breath in and out, before you start speaking, and hold an image of that perfect end result in your mind. It can be all too easy to let your tone change to a plead and your pitch go high and whinny, when you’re not getting the response you want – so remember to keep clear and firm, no matter how the conversation is going.

Tip #4: Be mindful of your language

Another common mistake those with lower confidence levels make is change their terminology to match their assertiveness levels. If you want to appear more assertive (and subsequently, more confidence), stop using phrases such as I think, I guess, maybe and it’s only my opinion but…. Instead, opt for being certain, state what you know and whilst you’re at it – stop apologising!

Tip #5: Keep a positive attitude

Finally, look to keep everything positive. This doesn’t mean you have to constantly be smiling and avoiding mentioning any problems etc., but instead focus on solutions and potential ways forward. We all experience set-backs, but by keeping your attitude positive and focusing on your desired end goal, you’ll recover faster from them and avoid knocking your confidence, during the process.

By implementing these tips into your daily life, you’ll quickly ingrain them as normal and see your confidence AND assertiveness flourish as a result.

What assertiveness tips do you have, as part of your daily practice? Do you have a particular word or phrase you use, in order to remind yourself to be more assertive and confident – or maybe you have a particular stance? Why not share your tips in the comments box below!

Image courtesy of bruno135_406/Dollar Photo Club

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