I have written this book for everyone – young and old, men, women, students, educators, business people, administrators, parents, homemakers, sports enthusiasts, entertainers – yes, and you!
It has been carefully structured into 52 sections, covering the following areas:
- Deciding to be confident
- Self-awareness
- Thinking confidently
- Using your imagination to improve self-image
- Acting with confidence
- Confident communication.
Each section contains information, insights and words of inspiration, plus seven exercises, practical hints or points to ponder. That’s one a day – not too taxing. Is it?
I guarantee that if you read the material carefully and apply what you learn, you’ll notice big changes taking place within two or three months, and a year from now you’ll look back amazed at how much more confident you’ve become.
Overview – Sections
- How to build confidence: an introduction to the life-changing formula that will transform your life.
- How confident are you? Defining your starting point
- Sow the seeds of confidence and watch them grow: why you are the way you are and how you can become what you want to be.
- Whose responsibility is your confidence? Why, yours, of course!
- Getting motivated: setting goals which give you the impetus to change and to grow Determination: identifying the reasons to change, and reinforcing your commitment to be confident.
- Thinking like a confident person: you start transforming your life by changing the way you think.
- The Four Step Method: a cast iron way to become a positive thinker.
- Silencing the Inner Critic: challenging the little voice in your head that loves to criticize you
- Affirmations: how to use them to build confidence and the difference they make.
- Who do you imagine yourself to be? Self-image and the subconscious
- Getting the most from creative imagery: life-transforming techniques which change your self-image permanently
- The ‘As If ’Principle: acting as if you’re confident to become more confident.
- Eat an elephant: the importance of taking it one step at a time.
- Self-awareness 1 – the past: examining how the past has affected you and what’s been holding you back.
- Self-awareness 2 – what are you like? Understanding yourself – the more self-aware you are, the more control you have over your life.
- Childhood: how you’re conditioning and your relationship with your parents as a child continue to affect you.
- Control dramas: how you learned to get what you wanted from others, and how it still governs your behavior.
- Take care of your Inner Child: learning to accept the child you once were as an important part of the adult you.
- Forgive, forget and be free: how to forgive those who have hurt you, take charge of your life and move on.
- Let go of the past: how to get rid of unwanted baggage from the past so it no longer affects you.
- Self-acceptance: accepting yourself as you are, especially those things you cannot change.
- Body image: love your body, warts and all!
- Get in shape: a health and fitness guide to give you more energy and more confidence.
- Calmness and confidence: deep relaxation and instant calmness for instant confidence.
- Anchoring: how to produce confident feelings any time you wish
- So far, so good: an opportunity to pause, take stock, reflect and review your progress to date.
- Find a purpose: one that inspires and motivates you, and gives your life meaning and direction.
- Goals revisited: consider what you wish to achieve in life, and get started right away.
- The Thinker thinks and the Proverb proves: how to draw on the power of the subconscious mind to build confidence.
- Confident self-talk: changing negative, restrictive thinking patterns to thoughts of confidence and self-worth.
- Beliefs: what they are, why they’re important, how to change them and create self-belief.
- Confident attitudes: seven attitudes of confidence for you to make your own.
- Self-love: self-worth, the key to happiness and fulfilling relationships.
- Concentrating on what you do well: identifying your strengths: acquiring new personal qualities.
- Overcoming weaknesses: building on your strengths. The importance of concentrating on what you do well, and cultivating patience and persistence
- Take a risk: how to get out of your comfort zone.
- Just do it: sure-fire confidence building activities. Go on – have a go!
- Confident body-language: adopt a confident posture and you feel more confident. You project confidence too.
- Conditions of worth: how others assess you. And how to deal with rejection
- Give up approval-seeking behavior: there’s only one person whose approval you really need – guess who?
- First impressions: conversational skills that make others want to talk to you, and allow you to be confident.
- Be a good listener: good listening is one of the secrets of confident communication and popularity.
- Stand up for yourself: introduction to assertiveness.
- How to be assertive: effective tools and techniques for standing your ground and getting your point across.
- Saying no when you mean no: one of the hardest things to do when you lack confidence.
- Compliments and criticism: how to handle criticism and give and receive compliments.
- How to ask for what you want: and what to say when you don’t get it.
- Lighten up: stop taking yourself too seriously and have a laugh.
- Emotional intelligence: understanding and managing your emotions; and relating to other people’s in an appropriate manner.
- Take an interest in others: helping others does wonders for your own confidence.
- Choose peace: becoming aware of your spiritual dimension and enjoying continual peace of mind.