These 3 habits can completely transform your confidence

These 3 habits can completely transform your confidenceThese 3 habits can completely transform your confidenceMost people misunderstand confidence They think that people are just naturally confident.This is false.People who have unearned levels of self-esteem of self-worth are arrogant, not confident.Confidence is a skill like any other.It must be acquired.Therefore, when you ask how to transform your confidence what you are really saying is How can I become mora competent.Because competence breeds confidence.If youve never competed in a martial art before and you arrogantly assume that you can fight a black belt in JuJitsu and win Youre a fool.Ladders is now on SmartNewsDownload the SmartNews app and add the Ladders channel to read the latest career news and advice wherever you go.However, if you have trained for years, earned a black belt yourself, and won several competitions, you can have confidence because youve become competent.Its also important to know that confidence in one area of your life leads to confidence in every area.When you get good at one thing you realize that you can get good at anything.And this is what true confidence is Its the understanding that you have the potential and ability to become highly competent at anything you want.But back to the question.How does one actually go about developing confidence?Specifically, what are three habits that can transform your confidence completely?Here are my three favorites.1. Start by transforming your bodyAs Ive already stated, confidence first requires competence in one or more area.Once youve become really good at a given skill or activity, you develop confidence in your ability to improve yourself and acquire new skills.And the simplest way Ive found to increase competence and prove to yourself that you can transform your life is to start by transforming your body. Why?Simple Becoming physically fit is actually really simple.Sure, there are a million and one different workout programs and die ts you can follow.But if you follow the core principles of exercise physiology such asEating a caloric surplus or deficit to gain muscle or lose fatProgressively adding weight to increase strength and muscle massUsing aerobic conditioning to increase speed and recoveryGetting plenty of good sleep so you can continue trainingYou WILL get results.Its not like entrepreneurship where you can fail at 100 businesses before succeeding or your romantic life where you can date dozens of people without ever finding someone with whom you click.If you show up and put in the work You will get results.And the confidence that you will gain by transforming your body and developing an Instagram worthy physique cannot be understated.When I went from scrawny to brawny, my confidence skyrocketed.I felt more confident around women.I had more energy and vitality and felt like I could take on the world.And I no longer felt self-conscious when hanging around my fit friends.If you want to be more confident , start by developing an amazing body.I recommend following a program like Bigger Leaner Stronger or Thinner Leaner Stronger by Mike Matthews since this is the simplest and most research-backed approach Ive ever found.Trust me When you build your body, confidence will come as a natural byproduct.2. Eradicate self-doubt and worry by practicing fear settingFear holds you back from feeling and experiencing confidence.They are antithetical emotions.You cannot be afraid and confident at the same time.But heres the thing Most of us are afraid of the wrong thingsWe are scared by ghosts and What ifs that dont actually exist.As such, the quickest way to develop your confidence is to overcome your fears and worries using two techniques.Fear settingExposure therapyFear setting is simply the act of writing down exactly what you are afraid of and then playing out the What if scenario all the way to the end.For example, if you are afraid of quitting your job and starting your own business write d own everything you are afraid of from Looking foolishGoing brokeBeing homelessFailingGetting laughed atEtc. etc. etc.But dont stop there Once you have your fears clearly written out, you are now going to write out how you can eliminate possible downsides and maximize the upsides.For example, if you want to start your own business but are too afraid, you couldStart with a side hustle while keeping your current jobFind a mentor who has the results you want and pay him to teach youRequest a sabbatical from work instead of quitting outrightCreate a backup plan in case you failThen, I want you to play out the worst case scenario in your head.If you fail on EVERYTHING, whats the worst that will happen.Short of death and dismemberment, you will quickly realize that what you are scared of isnt even that scary.In fact, youve probably overcome worse situations before.When you realize this, your confidence will be restored and your fear eradicated.But this leaves me with one more way to beat f ear and develop confidence 3. Expose yourself to things you fear regularlyIn other words Get out of your comfort zoneWhen you sit in your comfort zone and only do things that you are used to, its easy to become lazy and complacent.You will no longer feel confident because you will no longer be taking strides towards achieving the life of your dreams.If you want to maximize your confidence then you need to prove to yourself on a regular basis that you are capable of doing anything you set your mind to.So make a list of things that you fear or are, at the very least, uncomfortable with.And then go do those things every day.Here are a few examples to get you startedTake ice cold showers instead of hot onesTalk to that pretty girl/guy in line at StarbucksCall your phone company and ask for a discount (youd be amazed how many people are terrified of the phone)Take a part-time sales job and do cold calls every dayIf you have phobias such as heights, snakes, or driving fast, slowly expose yourself to those thingsJust do MORE things that scare you on a daily basis.I promise if you will do this for the next 90 days, you will feel more confident, self-assured, and ready to take on the world than you ever have in your life.This post originally appeared on Quora.