Soft skills (a.k.a. Interpersonal skills ) are crucial parts of any professional’s talents, and one of the most important amongst them is self-confidence. The external perception of you and belief in your abilities rely on good self-esteem because you’ll act and seem different to others without it.
How does self-esteem affect interpersonal communication?
An unconfident person will find it challenging to communicate clearly with his or her colleagues, and a lack of self-esteem will make becoming a leader almost impossible. So, it stands to reason that it’s a part of your skillset that it’s wise to put time into developing.
Why is confidence a critical skill?
Confidence is vital whether you’re attending a meeting, taking a work interview or just getting on with your job. It’s one of those things that’s obvious when a person has it, as well as when they don’t, as it’s one of those interpersonal skills that pervades everything you do.
So, let’s avoid further hyperbole and get to those 5 methods of self-confidence building we promised you in the title of the blog…
Method #1 - Work On Your Talents
Career counselling teaches us that working on hard skills is a great way to enhance your professional self-confidence. By taking short courses focusing on areas you know you’re weak in, you can become a more informed professional, which will naturally make you feel more assured of yourself and your abilities.
Method #2 - Review Your Achievements
Everyone, no matter who they are, will have some achievements that they can point to, at some point in their career. While no one should rest on their laurels, your confidence can get a useful boost if you take the time to write out what you’ve been able to accomplish in the past. This will remind you that you’ve got the ability to deliver when it matters.
Method #3 - Develop Your Self-Image
Interpersonal skills can go ‘cold’ if you don’t nurture them, so try and embody the best version of yourself whenever you can. Think of yourself in your dream job and then try and be that person every day, as with a positive mindset, backed by self-affirming coaching, it becomes more real and that much more attainable.
Method #4 - Don’t Stay In Your Comfort Zone
The truth is that an unconfident person won’t know what they’re capable of until they try, so don’t sit safe and sound in your comfort zone all of the time! By pushing the envelope and facing things that you might be slightly afraid of, you can prove to yourself that your abilities go well beyond what you might have convinced yourself to be true.
Method #5 - Take Care of Yourself
A person’s interpersonal skills and overall ability can go up markedly when they take care of themselves by getting enough sleep and eating a healthy, balanced diet. Meditation can also help significantly reduce stress, resulting in a calmer and better prepared you. Social health needs to be addressed too, so don’t be afraid to go out and mingle with colleagues outside of work from time to time.
Enhance Your Interpersonal Skills With OCA Today!
Self-confidence will serve you well in your career, but don’t worry if yours is a little lacking, as soft skills - just like hard skills - can be worked on using video-based, CPD-endorsed short online courses from OCA. Put together in collaboration with top industry experts and over 20 different industries, our online course training provides an engaging and immersive learning experience.
Want to see what that experience looks like? No problem, just take a look at our student study demo or head over to www.onlinecoursesaustralia.edu.au where you’ll find a selection of flexible payment options that allow you to spread out the cost of your training.
However, to get in touch with us to have any questions you might have answered, call us on 1300 611 404 or email us at [email protected]. Rest assured that as soon as we hear from you, we’ll reply as soon as we possibly can.
