Great self-confidence is something that everyone can benefit from developing.

Why is it that when the lives of two friends or colleagues of similar backgrounds, education, age, and ability are compared, we often see that one has achieved great things in all aspects of their lives with seemingly very little effort or restriction, whilst the other has struggled and fumbled through, been easily discouraged and de-motivated and looked up to their colleague other with increasing envy and frustration?

The difference that makes the difference between these two individuals often simply comes down their level of self-confidence.

Having an indestructible sense of self-confidence and faith in our own abilities makes achieving the things we want in our life, and overcoming the obstacles that appear before us, become so much easier and less intimidating.

No-one would doubt the benefits of improved confidence, but for some of us, actually increasing our levels of self-confidence can be a daunting task.

So how can YOU use your inner creativity to improve your own confidence?

Well, simply create more! It sounds obvious, but let's be more specific. Whatever your preferred ways of expressing your creativity are, do them as often as you can.

Whether anyone else sees our creative work or not, the act of creating and of listening to our inner instincts, trusting them and expressing them in creative ways, naturally increases our self-confidence and our belief in ourselves.

Also when we are being creative, we are honouring our true selves. The more creative we are, the more confident we become, and the two become virtually inseparable and spill over into all areas of lives.

So whether being more creative for you means writing a few paragraphs in a journal each day, singing in the shower, cooking a delicious new meal or composing a symphony, make some time EVERY day to do something that allows you to express your creativity and increase your confidence in yourself. Even if it's just ten minutes.

As an additional bonus, you will soon find that you actually make MORE time for yourself. By committing a regular amount of time each day to creative expression, you will be actually DOING the creative activities you enjoy doing, and therefore reduce the time you spend just wishing or daydreaming about doing them.
5 common reasons why people lack self-confidence -

There are many ways that we can use our creativity to improve our self-confidence. Here are some of the reasons people feel they lack self-confidence in the first place, and how they can be overcome -

- "I don't know where to start." People often believe self-confidence is an elusive and difficult thing to have and something that only happens to a fortunate few. The huge availability of books, courses and websites on increasing your self-confidence these days means there's no shortage of information and advice to help us.

- "I'm not a naturally confident person." Then become one. We each know what confidence means to us, and have experienced times of feeling confident. By drawing on these experiences and studying and learning from other people we consider to have high levels of self-confidence, we can soon increase our own.

- "I've never achieved anything worthwhile." Everyone, if they look closely enough at their lives, can find achievements to be proud of. These can be in all areas of your life - creative achievements, careers, relationships and many others. If you think you can't do this for your own life, why not get together with a friend and write a list of each other's achievements that you're proud of?

- "It's too big a task to take on." Often the prospect of taking on a large or complex task can shake our self-confidence and raise doubts in our abilities. By simply breaking down the task into smaller, manageable stages, we can increase confidence as we go through and build on the success of completing each step along the way.

- "I always make mistakes." Mistakes are the most important element of learning and developing. If something does not give you the results you expected, look carefully at what you did well, and the things you maybe could do better if you had to do the task again. By responding in this way you can build your confidence and ability to grow and learn.

Copyright 2006 Dan Goodwin