Confidence has the ability to shape who we are as people, the opportunities we take, and how we see ourselves when we look in the mirror. Confidence is extremely important during adolescence as you are deciding who you are and who you want to be, and without it teenagers become vulnerable to mental illness and insecurities curbing the ability to grow into who they want to be. Sophomore Aislinn Paez Jaimes says, “To me confidence is when somebody believes in themselves and that they can succeed.” Confidence can be improved in multiple ways, some more effective than others. The best thing to do is try what seems logical to you and keep testing until you find things that stick and feel an improvement.

 If you are looking for daily empowerment, it is proven that standing in a power stance, such as having your feet shoulder width apart with your hands on your hips with your back straight for two minutes, will raise testosterone levels thus increasing confidence levels. Any stance with good posture that makes you feel large and in charge or mimics someone you consider confident and powerful will increase confidence levels. This technique is a great quick way to help with daily empowerment, but may not be best for dealing with longstanding confidence and happiness within yourself.

 A great way to fight off insecurities is simply to learn something interesting and just for you with no pressure. This can be picking up a new skill or researching a topic you are interested in so you can learn with no pressure from anyone else to be the best. Believing you have the ability to do what you want with nothing but yourself to hold you back can also come in handy when facing a seemingly impossible challenge.

 Setting small achievable goals is another great confidence builder. This can be anything from overcoming a daily struggle to making a good grade on a tough test, but as you successfully complete your goals, your sense of self-worth will rise. The key is to be proud of every challenge you overcome because you did it despite fear or discomfort with it and letting yourself be proud of achievements will help with continual success of insecurity. This is most effective when you write these goals down so there is no forgetting or avoiding them and you can check off the goals you succeed in. This is also helpful when you feel insecure, because you can look back at all the challenges you faced and persevered through. By doing this when dealing with a bigger problem, you can see you have always had the ability to be successful in your challenges and goals and can with this one, too.

 Lots of people struggle with confidence, so do not be afraid to talk about it. You may help someone else struggling with it. Sophomore Miguel Rios says, “In baseball confidence is definitely key. I can not go out there and expect to play with the best if I do not believe I can.” No matter what methods work or do not, self-love does not happen overnight. Confidence takes time and effort and there will always be something trying to bring it down. Do not get discouraged, everyone can be confident but not every method works for everyone. Keep testing and trying different tips and eventually confidence will come easier and will not be such a struggle. Everything good, even loving yourself, takes time.