How to increase professional self-esteem

The perception of your professional qualities is part of your overall self-esteem. If you lack self-confidence outside of work, it's harder to think of yourself as a good professional. But the opposite is also true. If you raise your professional self-esteem, then you can feel more confident in other areas of life.

1. Make a list of your achievements

This advice is considered trivial by many - it is rare to meet a person who has never heard of it. But, to be honest, not many people follow it. People often think that they already remember everything they have achieved. And that the list of their merits would take no more than two or three lines - that would be something to be proud of! If you think the same, still don’t rush to abandon this idea.

Don't think that you should only write down achievements, which can win the Nobel Prize - no less. Put your inner critic to rest and think about what good you've done at work lately. Let the little things be on the list. For example, this week you successfully had three calls. Or they re-signed a contract with a regular client. Or maybe they quickly drew up a detailed work plan for the next month. Or completed all the tasks for the day by lunchtime. Write everything down.

Often, professionalism is not about records, but about daily work, where it’s the little things that matter. And such a list will show you that you are doing a good job with your responsibilities.

You can start a ritual: at the end of each working day, note what you are ready for today praise. You will always find at least one point, even on the worst day.

If you want, you can make another list - one where there will be serious successes. Perhaps you will see that without the first list there would not have been a second one. And that it is the first one that is the basis of your confidence in your own professionalism.

2. Ask your boss for feedback

If a person wants to grow as a professional, this always works in his favor. Therefore, if you are at a dead end, you can consult with your manager. Try asking him what he thinks will help your development. Arrange for such a conversation in advance.

It’s worth preparing for a conversation with your boss. Think about what you love and are good at doing. Think about what problems seem especially difficult. And try to sincerely tell your manager why you feel insecure.

If you and your boss do not have a non-work-related conflict, such frankness is unlikely to do any harm.

An adequate manager knows perfectly well that all employees are not superheroes, but ordinary people.

This means that they definitely have weaknesses, including professional ones. And if a person seeks to improve his skills, this will be useful not only for himself employee, but also the company for which he works.

Therefore, it is very likely that your boss will give objective feedback and tell you what steps you should take. Perhaps he will also be interested in your point of view on internal work processes. As a result, both the conversation itself and the conclusions drawn from it will help you feel more confident.

Sometimes it happens that even the very thought of such a conversation is unpleasant for a person, because he does not expect anything good from his boss. And once again he tries not to communicate with his colleagues. If this sounds like you, it's worth thinking: maybe it's time change job, and at the same time both the leader and the team? It is likely that in the new company your uncertainty will disappear on its own.

3. Do more of the tasks you're good at

Probably everyone has favorite things to do at work. You know exactly in which areas you act faster and better than many of your colleagues. For example, you understand how to quickly calm a scandalous client. Or they are able to see weak points in the work plan that others may not notice. Or maybe you know how to organize any process with less time.

If there are no such things and no tasks on the work list make you happy, then again the issue may not be a matter of professional self-esteem. Think about whether you are in the right place. It might be worth looking for a job in the same field, but with tasks that are more interesting to you. For example, a designer who is tired of developing layouts for product packaging can try his hand at book publishing.

But if you have favorite tasks, then every small victory will increase your self confidence. And over time, quantity will turn into quality - you will no longer doubt that you are capable of more serious challenges. So try to do more often exactly what you do easily and with pleasure.

4. Take on new tasks that you have never encountered before

For a specialist who is not very confident in himself, new tasks can cause fear. Sometimes it seems that if familiar tasks are difficult, then it will be even more impossible to cope with unfamiliar ones. But often it is switching to another activity that helps you acquire new skills, reboot, and increase self-esteem.

When you're tackling unfamiliar tasks, you're bound to make mistakes. You can relax: now you have every right to be imperfect.

Just learn new skills and correct any mistakes that arise. Very soon, maybe even in a week or two, you will be surprised at how much progress you have made compared to your very first attempts. This means we have moved to the next level, which is at least a little higher than the previous one.

New skills will help you look at familiar tasks differently. Perhaps they will seem easier to you than before, and this will also raise your self-esteem.

5. Get professional training

This is also useful for those who are confident professionals, and for those who doubt their own abilities. Choose which skill you are going to upgrade.

Sometimes it is useful to improve those skills in which a person is not yet strong. For example, a copywriter can learn to make simple diagrams and diagrams in a graphics editor so that he can do them himself and not depend on the designer.

But sometimes, on the contrary, it is worth strengthening those skills that you do not doubt. For example, another copywriter might be better off taking an additional course on commercial emails.

In both cases, professionalism, and therefore self-esteem, can increase. Choose which option will be useful for you.

6. Participate in professional seminars and conferences

Today you can find special events in almost any field, both online and offline. A workshop for leather craftsmen, a marathon for illustrators, a conference for marketers, a meeting of wedding ceremonies - there is an event for any professional.

Such events help you communicate with people in your field and find out what interesting things are happening in it. Perhaps you will learn something new or share what you know. In addition, expand your professional communications. All of this can benefit your self-esteem.