Short messages on Confidence from Respect Yourself, the guidance site for young people to help make good decisions in life.
Other people might judge you for not meeting up to their standards – but if you’re true to your own goals and values, then you know you’ve got your priorities right.
No matter how much progress you make there will always be the people who insist that whatever you’re trying to do is impossible. People aren’t always right :)
If you don’t want to do something that your friends want you to do, you can choose not to do it. You shouldn’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do. If they are really your friends they should respect you and not make you do things that make you uncomfortable.
Doctors will help with physical and mental health. Be honest about what you think may be causing the problem, and don’t be embarrassed. Your doctor will have seen and heard it all before.
You must never give into despair, surrendering to your lowest instincts. In the darkest times, hope is something you give yourself. This is the meaning of inner strength.
Just because you haven’t done something before doesn’t mean you can’t do it. It just means you haven’t done or tried it yet.
If the plans you made for something don’t work out as expected, try another way. Make the best of the situation and be creative.
A role model is someone you look up to, where you aim to model yourself on their good example. They can be someone real, like a celebrity, teacher or grandparent, or a character from fiction. Imagine how they would act positively in a given situation, and copy their response – get a very vivid idea of what they say and do.
People often assess you from your appearance, as they see this before they speak to you. It takes little effort to shower, scrub up and smell nice each day, but can make the world of difference – you don’t know who you’ll meet today!
Passing around a smile to as many people as possible makes you feel good as well as them! Don’t judge their reactions, don’t take it personally if they don’t want to join in, and do keep persisting!