HOW TO BE CONFIDENT

People spend far too much time trying to figure out what other people are thinking of them. They tend to forget one very basic fact:

people are social creatures, and as such, they’re always trying to figure out what everyone else thinks about you so they can decide if they themselves like you or not! If other people seem to like you, they’ll assume the other people have a good reason, and they’ll go along with it. Here are some easy ways to ‘trick’ people into liking you:

1) Act confident. Even if you sometimes aren’t really feeling it, act (without being an arrogant asshole) like you feel great about yourself. Although I’m insecure I don’t ever come off as someone who is. So don’t fret about minor inconveniences, don’t get embarrassed about things that happen to everyone, don’t stress out when people see you make a mistake. Chances are, they’re all worried about the same things day-to-day, and if you make them feel more comfortable by not worrying, they’ll relax and enjoy your company more. Just c h i l l o u t . . . relax, do whatever feels natural, and enjoy yourself. Besides, if you fake it long enough, you might actually start to really feel more confident!

2) Don’t freak out over things other people do. You can’t be relaxed and confident and then start howling with laughter when someone else trips and drops their lunch all over themselves. It’s hard to balance being a jerk with being low-key, since jerks tend to put way too much effort into adding social distance between themselves and the person they’re making miserable. Besides, why would you want to be a jerk anyways? You can be nice to everyone and still be yourself and relaxed– if you’re confident, are you really going to care if someone snickers because you’re being nice to the biggest loser in the school? Hell no! You’re just doing your thing, and who cares what they think.

3) Always be true to yourself. It sounds like a Celine Dion song, but keep an ear out for your own thoughts and feelings. Are you really feeling okay about certain things? What would make you the most comfortable? What do you really want? There’s no point in walking around acting like you think one thing if you really feel completely the opposite. This sounds like a contradiction with all I’ve said so far– why tell you to act like you’re confident when you don’t think you are, then tell you not to do things that you aren’t?– but remember that confidence isn’t who you are, it’s how you project who you are. You already know if you’re an anime geek, a football-obsessed sports nut, a nihilistic. In high school everyone-Thought-I-Had-The-Perfect-Life-When-Really-I carried the weight of the world on my shoulders… confidence is your body language and your attitude saying,‘This is who I am, and I’m okay with that.’ Don’t forget that one basic fact: if you act like it’s true, people will generally believe it! No 17-year-old who’s been beaten down by peers for years and years will act confident, right? People will assume that other people have treated you well because they liked you, and that is the reason why you are so confident.

There’s just one side effect: it may be catching, and you may find yourself with a chronic case of Feeling Better About Things.

This is the one thing I wish I had told everyone when I was in high school.

-GOODNIGHT!!!

“OH MY GOD” – A FILM BY PETER RODGER

Directed by Peter Rodger and music composed by Alexander van Bubenheim. Shot in over 22 countries, Oh My God explores the different ideas and thoughts people from around the world have on God. Further information can be found at www.omgmovie.com