Fake it till you make it – it sounds trite but it really is true. If you find it hard to appear confident, here are 15 things that might help you:
Body Language
- Stand tall and take a deep breath
- Have an open posture (no crossed arms, or legs, keep your hands out of your pockets)
- Smile
- Don’t fidget
- Move deliberately – don’t rush around the room and don’t try to melt into the background
In conversation
- Make eye contact
- Speak slowly and clearly (but not too slowly)
- Don’t rush to fill in every silence
- Stay on topic – don’t meander off on a tangent
- Use gestures to illustrate a point
Remember
- Many, if not most of the people you meet will be just as nervous as you
- Few people will be focussed on you, instead they’ll be more aware of what they’re doing
- FEAR: False Emotions Appearing Real – what’s the worst that could happen?
- If you do something wrong, don’t make a mountain out of a molehill
- Don’t get stuck in your own head. Overthinking everything will not help, no matter how much you might like to (I certainly do).