5 Tips for Being More Confident in 2025

Honest to God, my mother told me one of her goals for the new year is to do 365 hard—not 75 hard, but all year round hard. 

No doubt, the rocking bod that comes with 365 Hard would give me some confidence— at the extent of my sanity!

Perhaps, instead of adding another item to your to-do list with a physical goal, I challenge you to implement a new goal: ✨becoming more confident ✨ . Dare I say there may be more to gain in doing so than literal gains?

1. Quit talking bad about people.

   I was at a friend’s birthday dinner this year where everyone knew each other, but I wouldn’t say we were all the closest friends. Somehow, someone got brought up at the table who was not present and started getting sh*t on. 

   If you talk bad about someone to me and barely know me, it says nothing to me about the absent person and everything to me about you. 

   Spilling secrets and gabbing through gossip is a quick fix for feeling close to someone, but it is fake. 

   If you are going to say all that about another person, what are you going to say about me? 

   How uninteresting are you if all you have to talk about is other people? 

   To say you are never going to talk about someone behind their back is a major stretch. But, keep it between you and your best friend. You will be way more genuine, kind, and optimistic –  the person people want to be around and trust.

2. Understand that everything stems from yourself.

There is a quote from the Dalai Lama that hangs in my yoga studio that reads, 

“When you think everything is someone else’s fault, you will suffer a lot. When you realize that everything springs only from yourself, you will learn both peace and joy.”

It is so easy to blame other people for your problems. 

You may feel like your best friend doesn’t tell you things anymore. But maybe it is because the last time she did, you didn’t take her seriously. 

You may think your boyfriend doesn’t shower you with words of affirmation in a text or a card. When was the last time you did that for him?

You may think your sister thinks she’s better than you. But really you’re just insecure. 

Put your pride aside. Realize that in every conflict, you play a part. In recognizing so, you have the power to make it better. 

3. Don’t talk bad about yourself.

Self-deprecating humor is one of my tried and true forms of getting a good laugh. 

I am quick to make a joke about how I am a chaotic mess. 

Then I will go home and be upset that people think I am a chaotic mess. 

When you talk bad about yourself to others, you are inviting them to feel, think, or say those things about you. 

There is nothing worse than showing up somewhere and saying, “Excuse my outfit…” Absolutely no one would have questioned your outfit, hair, scratch, WHATEVER… until you invited them to. 

Nobody is thinking about anything but themselves. Act confident and nobody will question you. 

4. Please Stop Projecting.

One time, someone told me I needed plastic surgery. I knew it was only because they felt like they needed plastic surgery and didn’t want to be alone in their insecurity. But I will never, EVER forget it. 

Another time, someone was going through the process of moving to another state. They told me multiple times that I needed to do more with my life and move out of KY. Really, they were just trying to convince themselves that they were making the right decision. 

We all do it, right? 

By projecting things we are uncomfortable with about ourselves onto other people, we defend ourselves. 

It is a lose-lose situation. You look insecure. The person you’re talking to just gained a new insecurity. 

Access your own emotions. Feel mindful of your own decisions and feelings. Realize they are your own. Don’t share them with others by projecting. 

5. “You Look Like”

For the love of God, everybody needs to take “You look like ____” out of their vocabulary. Under very few circumstances is that ever a good sentence. Only if you are going to say I look like a Victoria’s Secret angel or J Lo.

Whoever you may fill in the blank with may be the hottest girl in the world to you. But I doubt she is to me. And you probably just ruined my day, if not my month!

Everybody will be a heck of a lot more confident in 2025 if we prohibit this phrase outside of the chosen universally-hot celebs. 

Confidence is contagious. Be the kind of person who makes everyone around you feel more confident in 2025. Gain emotional intelligence and empathy without ever having to step foot in the gym. You will probably have a higher chance of landing a bf/gf through that anyway.