7 Ways to Beat Self-Doubt and Boost Confidence Today

The neuroscience behind self-doubt and how to use it to rewire your brain

How many times has the inner critic held you back from going after what you really wanted in life? Maybe it was hesitation about starting your own business or switching careers. Perhaps you felt fear and doubt about releasing your art into the world or moving to a new state or country.

The first step in not allowing the inner critic to take over is to realize that it’s experienced universally — by all of us. It’s not just you. Even the people you look up to most feel self-doubt at some point in their lives. We all ask ourselves “am I really strong or courageous enough to do this?”

It turns out there’s a biological reason for the self-doubt we feel. Luckily, science shows that we can train our brains to stop giving in to it and to cultivate greater courage and confidence regardless of what dream we’ve chosen to pursue.

Let’s start by briefly exploring the reason behind the inner critic. When you understand where it comes from, it’s much easier to deal with it when it surfaces. Then we’ll touch on some simple ways to start rewiring your mind for more confidence today.

The biology behind self-doubt

Your brain is wired to keep you safe. It’s always on alert for potential threats to your physical or mental well-being. But the downside of this is that it keeps you stuck in your comfort zones, hindering you from expressing your true inner strengths and potential.

When you start thinking about doing something that requires going beyond your comfort zone, your brain initially reacts with feelings of doubt and fear. The same fight-or-flight response is triggered as if there was a tiger around the corner. You feel stress-related chemicals like adrenaline and cortisol pulsating through your veins to prepare you for action.

Too often these feelings are so strong that we go right back to the comfort zones of doing what we’ve always done. The brain does not want to face the unfamiliar or the unknown.

In order to maintain a sense of balance, your brain creates neural shortcuts to help you easily access the states of thinking that you focus on most. When you allow your attention to dwell on what could go wrong, you strengthen the neural networks associated with these thoughts and feelings.

You are in essence telling your brain that these feelings are important. Because your brain becomes used to them, it feels like you can’t help but fall into self-doubt when you start thinking about doing something challenging or out of your comfort zone.

Moving away from the brain’s negativity bias

Another way the brain protects us from doing something dangerous is the negativity bias. We notice what could go wrong before seeing all the potential reasons why things could go right. This includes what we refer to as the inner critic.

This negativity bias is our brain’s natural way of turning attention to potential threats rather than towards the strengths and resources already available within us.

The good news is that thanks to the power of neuroplasticity, we can train ourselves to focus on the good — not just in life but in ourselves as well. This is crucial in times when we’re dealing with so much uncertainty and chaos in the world. Reducing the voice of the inner critic improves our performance and productivity on all levels, including boosting our health.

7 WAYS TO OVERCOME SELF-DOUBT:

1. Focus on your strengths daily

The more we learn to focus on the good within ourselves, the weaker the voice of the inner critic becomes. Make it a daily practice to recognize the strengths you’ve exhibited that day.

Think about how much value you’ve added to the lives of the people around you. Consider how your unique skills and character traits have made another’s life easier — be grateful for your ability to help others in this way. Journal about all the ways you brought smiles to the lives of others every day.

2. Build confidence by consistently stepping out of your comfort zones

Do something small every day that is just enough out of your comfort zone to where you feel proud of yourself afterward. Perhaps squeeze two more pushups into your work-out routine. Send a few more emails to potential business prospects even when you’re feeling a potential fear of rejection.

The more you take actions that get you out of your comfort zone, the more you strengthen the neural networks of confidence. You learn to trust in your own ability to navigate discomfort. Once you see the fruits of your labor after you push past the fear, you realize that you actually can do the things that you thought were hard or impossible.

3. Practice being kind to yourself

Intentionally cultivating self-compassion and self-gratitude helps you shift your focus away from the ruminating negative thoughts to the positive ones. End your days by asking, “Have I been kind to myself today?” If the answer is no, look for small ways to be kinder to yourself the next day.

Here’s a tip for how you can do that: When you start feeling the inner critic coming on, imagine that you’re talking to a little child. See if you can shift your internal dialogue to one of kindness and compassion — just as if you were talking to the child.

4. Celebrate the small wins

When you celebrate your successes, your brain releases dopamine. This makes you feel good — and it acts as a natural motivation booster! You then feel more excited about doing more of the things that caused that initial rush of dopamine.

When you finish even a small portion of a project you’ve been working on, acknowledge the good work you’ve put in. Reward yourself by doing an activity you enjoy such as going for a walk or reading a good book.

Make it a point to notice your wins more often — that’s how you use them to build more positive momentum.

5. Practice gratitude

Any time you bring your attention to what’s right in your life, you’re shifting it away from the things that typically bring on fear or self-doubt. Instead of focusing on what you can’t control, you acknowledge what is good and what you can control.

In this way, you override the inner critic by telling your brain that there’s an abundance of resources rather than lack.

When you see the abundance of resources within yourself, you start seeing new opportunities to work with it to produce the results you’re seeking.

6. Think of others

Self-doubt is often accompanied by a fear of rejection, a fear of what others will think of us. It’s essentially a self-centered way of thinking.

But again, it’s not just you — we all naturally worry about how we’re perceived. We want to protect the idea we have of ourselves (even though neuropsychology shows that’s actually just an illusion).

As soon as you can shift your focus to others, you reduce that constant rumination about your own worries and stresses.

Next time you feel self-doubt, try thinking about who could benefit from the actions you’re thinking about taking. Let that motivate and inspire you to keep going when things are tough!

7. Cultivate meta-awareness through meditation

Meta awareness is often defined as being able to notice your own thought patterns. It’s essentially recognizing that you’re aware of being aware.

When you notice that the voice in your mind is not you, you immediately feel the relief of knowing that you don’t have to succumb to those negative thoughts. You are the one in front of them. You are the noticing.

It is through mindful awareness that you can train your brain to break the cycles of self-criticism. It helps you become focused in the present moment where you feel your power rather than perpetuating old ways of thinking that disempower you.

You can find plenty of great meditations for mindfulness and self-compassion on Youtube channels or apps like InsightTimer, Headspace, or Calm. I’ve listed a few of my favorite books and videos about meditation and guided meditations here.

BONUS TIP: Calm your nervous system through your breath

When you are feeling fear, stress, or self-doubt, your sympathetic nervous system is activated in order to prepare you for action. If you want an easy way to calm your fears and stress in the heat of the moment, simply look to your breath.

Breathing deeply calms you as it helps to activate the parasympathetic nervous system — the one responsible for your body’s rest and relaxation response.

When you can get into a more relaxed state, you become more present. The more you train yourself to live in the present moment, the less time you spend ruminating on negative thoughts and worries about the future.

Take power back from your old thoughts

Day by day, as you learn to acknowledge what an amazing being you are, you start feeling your own power. The more you notice that you have the power to create your life, the more confidence you gain.

As you gain confidence, the feeling of powerlessness starts to dissipate. You notice that you’ve always been stronger than any voices of criticism in your mind — whether from yourself or others.

You are a miracle and you are here to change the lives of many. After all, we’re all just learning to overcome our fears and step into our full light together.

If you’re interested in learning more about the science behind overcoming self-doubt and gaining more ideas for creating a life of more meaning and joy, I invite you to grab a free copy of my newest book Dream, Doubt & Do It Anyway. The ebook/Kindle version will be available for free on Amazon this weekend (February 13 and 14).