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9 Traits Self-Confident People Have in Common

April 1, 2022

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Coworkers communicating with confidence

Practicing self-confidence can greatly improve your professional, personal, and love life in a variety of ways. Self-confident individuals are decisive and make decisions based upon what they think is the best option and avoid overthinking. Additionally, self-confident people are viewed highly by others and may be more likely to receive a job opportunity or promotion than an equally qualified, less confident peer.

While self-confidence is something that many people desire for themselves, it is a trait that many of us have room for improvement. You may know a confident person and think that they were born with a high level of self-confidence. Although this may be true for some people, it is something that can be learned and refined over time. All it takes is having the right mindset, and practicing what you think the best, most self-confident version of yourself would do and think throughout the day.

If you wish to improve your self-confidence, read on to see what traits self-confident people have in common. While not every self-confident person expresses their confidence in the same way, many of them do share common traits. Understanding the traits that self-confident people share may help you foster and develop more self-confidence in yourself.

Below are 9 traits that self-confident people share.

1.  They Don’t Seek Approval from Others

Self-confidence means being self-assured. This can apply to everything from who you are as a person, i.e., your character, and to your accomplishments. Self-confident people don’t seek approval from others because they receive that approval internally, they know exactly who they are and when they’ve done a good job. Therefore, they don’t require any validation from others.

2.  Their Verbal Cues Match Their Non-Verbal Cues

If you’ve ever talked with someone and walked away feeling that they were being disingenuous, it may be because their verbal cues didn’t match their non-verbal cues. For example, if someone was complimenting another person while wincing or faking a smile, it may be a sign that they didn’t mean what they were saying. Confident people on the other hand tend to mean what they say. You can tell when someone is being genuine because what they are saying lines up with what their non-verbal cues are telling you. If you are truly happy or excited about something, both your words and your physical cues should reflect this.

3.  They Don’t Worry About Things Outside of Their Control

While there is a time and a place for a little bit of worry, worrying about something too much, especially something outside of your control, is a problem. Self-confident people will always stand up for what they think is right and make the best out of any situation, but they also understand there are certain things they can’t control. When things get out of hand or land outside their control, self-confident people let it run its course knowing they did everything they can.

4.  They Aren't Afraid to Ask for Help

Self-confident people know exactly who they are and they understand that nobody is perfect. They also understand that they are not an expert on every subject nor the best at any given thing. Because they understand this, they know that there is no shame in asking for help. On the contrary, they believe that asking for help is a sign of strength. Asking others for help is a great way to gain both insight and a different perspective on a problem or task, so confident people seek help when they need it.

5.  They Are Decisive

Although it is good to be critical when you are working on a project or making a decision, overthinking is a tell-tale sign of insecurity. Sometimes we are greeted with several choices that can seem relatively equal, and we don’t know what to choose. After evaluating the risks and opportunities of each choice, self-confident people make the decision rather than overthinking.

6.  They Are Assertive

Being assertive is another key part of confidence. How can you call yourself confident if you aren’t willing to tell people how you feel, what you believe, and what you think you deserve as an employee, friend, partner, etc.? Confident people make their feelings and desires clear without overstepping the line. For example, if you know that you work very hard at your job and think you deserve a pay raise, be assertive and let your feelings be known.

7.  They Recognize When They’ve Made a Mistake

Confidence should never be confused with stubbornness. Someone who is stubborn may be unwilling or unable to accept when they’ve made a mistake, and that is a mistake in itself. Although confident people try their best, they are human too and are therefore bound to make mistakes. The best thing anybody can do after making a mistake is to own up to it and try to rectify it as best they can, and that is exactly what self-confident people do.

8.  They Persevere

In addition to recognizing when they’ve made a mistake, self-confident people persevere. In the face of rejection and failure, self-confident people do not start doubting themselves and giving in to negative thoughts; instead, they persevere with their endeavors because they are self-assured and know what they have to offer is valuable. Moments of rejection and failure may be undesirable, but they are also opportunities to reevaluate, learn, and make improvements.

9.  They Appear Confident

As humans, we tend to project how we feel about ourselves. Insecure people may avoid eye contact, avoid engaging in a conversation and use body language that portrays a lack of self-confidence. Self-confident people aren’t just confident within their minds, they act and look confident too. Confidence speaks volumes and it isn’t difficult to spot someone who is self-confident once you start noticing the traits that self-confident people have in common. Truly self-confident people won’t shy away from eye contact or a conversation, and they also have good posture along with body language that exudes positivity and security.

Author: Thomas Hall 

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