Confidence is a high-value trait, the presence or lack of which has a huge impact on a person’s life. People who show confidence easily earn the trust of their peers, employees, clients, or potential business partners. Meanwhile, individuals with low self-esteem often sell themselves short, appearing weak and unreliable, which most of the time leads them to be on the short end of the stick. 

Throughout life, one’s level of self-confidence frequently fluctuates. On good days, you might feel good about having accomplished something and your self-confidence is through the roof. On other days, it can plummet to the point of anxiety, causing loss of motivation, and resulting in poor effort. 

Thankfully, confidence is something you can learn. 

Here are some empowering TED talks to watch whenever you’re in need of a confidence boost or a reminder that you can in fact, become more confident by conscious choice.

How To Eliminate Self Doubt Forever & The Power of Your Unconscious Mind by Peter Sage

"People will never rise above their opinion of themselves."

Length:18m 32s

So much of what you do is influenced by your unconscious beliefs. These are deep-seated thoughts and ideas that you don’t know you have but which are affecting your conscious choices and decisions. While you might be aware that you have talent as a writer, your unconscious beliefs can lead you to intense self-criticism and stop you from submitting your work to publishers for fear of rejection and being told that you are not good enough. 

In this TED talk, Peter Sage advises that while some things can’t be changed, you can consciously change your environment and combat negative programming. Your body has no choice but to adapt to its environment and you can use this knowledge to your advantage. Take every opportunity to expose yourself to empowering stimulus, surround yourself with better people, and find help in coming to terms with the ideas that are sabotaging your growth.

Related: Self-Esteem vs. Self-Confidence: Understanding the Difference and Building Both

The skill of self confidence by Dr. Ivan Joseph

“No one will believe you unless you do.”

Length: 13m 20s 

Confidence is a skill that you can aim for and work towards. Building self-confidence can be a goal in itself. According to Dr. Joseph, confidence is just like any other skill that gets developed through persistent practice. Just like building habits, building a skill takes time but the payout is worth it. 

A great talk coming from a great man with great charm whose life is great proof of his mastery of himself, this this episode will help you see self-confidence as an achievable target that anyone can achieve. 

The power of believing that you can improve by Carol Dweck

“The power of ‘yet’.”

Length: 10m 24s 

The school system rewards outcome but not much the process. To some students, this means that it’s better to cheat on an exam as long as they get the right answers in the end. This excessive importance placed on getting it right induces the unfortunate effect of kids seeing difficulty in a negative light. Most of them come to see failure as a judgment of their intelligence which erodes their self-confidence and maybe nurture an aversion towards the next challenge. 

But when process is rewarded, every effort given towards tackling the difficulty is given credit. Carol Dweck believes that this attitude of believing that one can always improve is the mindset shift that schools should adopt. When you follow the philosophy of “Not Yet,” you will look at failure a little differently. 

Your body language may shape who you are by Amy Cuddy

“Our bodies change our minds.”

Length: 21m 02s 

Body language can tell you so much about another person but how does it affect how you see yourself? In this brilliant episode, Amy Cuddy breaks down research on nonverbal communication and reveals that how you carry yourself has a tremendous impact on your self-confidence, how you interact with the world around you, and how the simple act of power posturing can influence outcomes. 

Complementing Peter Sage’s talk on eliminating self-doubt, Cuddy’s revelations support the idea that you can hack your brain by consciously exposing yourself to external stimuli which triggers predictable biological responses. “Fake it ‘til you become it,” as Cuddy concludes.

Related: Self-Esteem vs. Self-Confidence: Understanding the Difference and Building Both

How to speak so that people want to listen by Julian Treasure

“Nothing wrong with silence in a talk.”

Length: 9m 58s 

The ability to speak well has a profound impact on one’s self-confidence. It is thus worth one’s while to learn how to speak clearly and properly so that people will want to listen to what you have to say. 

In this beautifully paced episode of TED talks, Julian Treasure reveals the seven deadly sins that make listening to someone simply unbearable. He then gives useful advice on the physiological aspect of speaking: how to use timbre, register, prosody, and even silence to emphasize ideas. He reveals the elements that make a speech powerful, and how you can warm up your voice instrument to improve your tone. 

Save or bookmark this article for the next time you’re feeling down and in need of some much-needed confidence boost. 

At Life Intelligence Group, we believe in the power of learning and the ability for anyone to reach their potential – it just takes some time and focus. Access our goal management app, TaskSpur, to help manage your time and focus with ease. 

Visit: Taskspur.com 

Download TaskSpur on Android | Download TaskSpur on your iPhone  

Sign up or Login on your browser