When people like yourself think about change,
They realize that change happens all the time,
Doesn't it?
I'd like you to take a few moments now to experience yourself a little differently.
To think about possibilities,
Think about change.
You know,
People are changing all the time.
Every day,
Your body changes.
You replace every cell in your body every three months.
You change yourself from a child to a teenager to an adult,
Automatically and without knowing how.
And that just shows that change is easy and natural for you,
Isn't it?
You are already changing in many ways.
You can change the way you dress.
You can change the way you work.
You can change the words you use to talk to people,
Can't you?
And therefore,
You can change the way you feel about yourself.
And this means you can easily see yourself become a different,
More confident person.
I once met a man in India who told me the way to get confidence is fake it till you make it.
Now,
Isn't that an interesting thing to think about?
And I wonder how easily you can imagine what it would be like to fake it till you make it.
Take a moment now and imagine yourself doing that.
Next week or next month maybe,
Just pretending to be confident.
Confidently acting confident.
And for you to be confident of being confident,
You need to be confident in your ability to be confident.
So you can be confident.
You can fake it confidently till you make it confidently.
And you might have to fake faking it till you can confidently fake faking confidence confidently until you're confident.
That you can have real confidence faking fake confidence confidently.
And you can do that,
Can't you?
Henry Ford became the richest man in the world by creating and running Ford Motor.
He started life as a farm mechanic but became a success because he had a clear idea of how the world worked.
He said something I think you might want to ponder.
In every situation it doesn't matter whether a man believes he can or believes he can't.
He's right.
So you see confidence is a matter of believing in yourself.
And I wouldn't tell you to believe in yourself.
I think you remember how you used to believe in yourself and you know you can again.
There are some things you are already confident about.
You're confident about your name.
You're confident about how many toes you've got,
Aren't you?
And I would like you to take a moment now.
Allow your mind to drift.
Go back into your memory.
Allow your mind to range over things you have done in the days and months past,
Years long ago.
I want you to go back to a time when you are very confident.
Every day in everything there is a time when you are naturally confident.
And you can think back over your life.
Even when you weren't confident,
There were times when you were confident.
And find times when you acted confidently.
When you did exactly the right thing and you knew you were doing the right thing.
And get that feeling again.
Bring that feeling up now.
And really feel the confidence you had then.
That feeling of confidence that you remember.
And now go into your memory and identify every instance,
Every time that you acted boldly and confidently.
Bring all those memories,
Every one of them to mind right now.
And when you think about it,
There are many things you already feel confident about,
Isn't it?
And that means when you choose to,
You can feel totally self-confident about the things you choose.
If you believe you can,
You can.
You are sitting in that chair,
Getting more and more comfortable with yourself knowing you can start to feel confident now.
Every change you perceive means your confidence is rising and giving you a positive outlook.
You may already have begun to realize that you are becoming aware of the changes.
And I'm wondering how eagerly you're looking forward to using them.
The old structure of your life is changing and making way for a more solid and happier existence.
In the days and weeks coming up,
You will be free to explore new opportunities and new relationships.
Before you go into a new situation,
You can take a moment to stop and imagine how good you will feel.
And that imagining makes you feel confident because you know as you begin to feel good about yourself,
Your confidence begins to grow.
You are filled with confidence.
And I'd like you now to think about some situation you might find yourself in where you need confidence.
It could be at work or a social setting or something else.
Think about all the ways you can take control of that situation and how good that makes you feel.
Imagine yourself dressed exactly right,
Saying the right thing,
Using the right gestures,
Fitting in with what others say,
What others expect.
Showing you are in command of yourself,
Getting respect.
See yourself looking good.
Hear your own voice.
Confident.
Sure.
Convincing.
Feel how you stand,
How you move,
How you smile.
Experience that feeling that comes with total confidence.
How good does that make you feel?
What part of that do you enjoy the most?
Now I'd like you to double that feeling.
And double it again.
And get used to that feeling because you have the confidence to get that feeling more and more from now on.
And always in situations like that,
Some little thing you see or feel reminds you instantly that you have changed now.
And you begin that process of building more confidence on your confidence,
Growing ever more confident.
You feel in control and sure of yourself in every situation.
Evaluate the situation before you choose the best way to react.
You always use the right words and gestures to match the expectations of the other person.
You are secure and confident in every situation.
You always act confident.
And your act is so good,
You convince yourself.
You stand confidently.
Dress confidently.
Move confidently.
Your voice is strong and steady.
Your handshake is firm and friendly.
Look people in the eye and you smile easily.
The way you hold yourself,
You communicate with your whole body.
You let people know you are pleased to see them.
You signal that you share their views and values.
That you are a worthwhile person.
That you look forward to meeting them.
You always know exactly what to say.
Everything about you broadcasts confidence.
And this makes others react to your inner confidence.
And their reaction confirms you are confident now.
You believe in yourself.
You know who you are.
You like who you are.
You know you are as good as anybody.
You are a winner.
I wonder if you can imagine yourself at a gathering.
Lots of people are talking.
Mingling.
There are drinks and nibbles.
And everyone is relaxed and having a good time.
And you enter the room.
Feeling great.
Looking great.
You mingle and greet people superbly.
You look well.
Poised.
Confident.
People look around and smile.
Ask you to come over.
And you just have a quick word and move on.
Everyone admires your poise.
Your control.
Your self-confidence.
You believe in yourself.
You can see it in their eyes.
The friendship from some.
Respect from others.
A bit of nervousness as well.
Some people are unsure of themselves when you are around.
You impress them with the way you walk in.
As if you own the place.
You belong there.
There are many people there.
Everyone you know,
In fact.
People from work.
People you know socially.
People you hardly know at all.
People you haven't seen for years.
Friends.
Family.
Colleagues.
All there because you are there.
You are the star of the party.
It is in your honor to celebrate how you have changed.
How you are showing automatic confidence in everything you do now.
How you make everyone feel good in your dealings with them.
And as you talk to this one and that one,
You hear snatches of conversation.
Doesn't he look so assured?
I wonder how he does it.
He is so good at what he does.
Everyone admires the way he has changed and now takes charge.
And further back,
You hear your name.
He is the best son I could have ever hoped for.
I have always been proud of him.
Even though I maybe never said it.
And I am even more proud now.
He has become everything I ever wanted him to be.
Now it's time for him to build on those achievements in his own way.
He has exceeded everything I ever dreamed of.
He can now go his own way.
He has nothing left to prove to me.
And so you leave that party.
You take with you those words you heard and they become a part of you.
Burned into your memory.
Something you will never forget.
Odd moment.
Those words come back to you and each time they make you feel good about yourself.
And maybe some parts of you think you don't deserve those words.
Maybe some part of you doesn't want to believe.
Many people are proud of you.
And you can be proud of what you have achieved.
After everything that has happened,
It is time for you to reassess what you think about yourself.
To really consider if you are being truthful.
Or if you can now allow yourself to believe the best about yourself.
To think about all your good qualities.
All you have to be proud of.
You can leave the past behind.
And the feeling that you are taking something away with you,
It's balanced by another feeling now.
Because you have accepted those words.
You can leave some things behind as well.
Ideas,
Feelings,
Things that have been holding you back.
As you leave that room,
You can become aware of the old things dragging behind you.
Like the train on a king or queen's gown.
Like pulling a broken down car.
And now,
You turn suddenly and slash out behind you and cut through the ties.
It falls away from you.
You can leave it all behind,
Can't you?
Dump things and move on.
And as you do,
You feel a weight lifting off your shoulders.
You breathe easier.
You feel something stir within you.
Free to change.
Free to be everything you want.
Now.
Everything you have learned today will help you to understand yourself and others better.
When you believe in yourself,
The more you meet new people,
The more you enjoy the sensation you always get.
And you forget about how you used to doubt yourself.
Because you can always find a moment to remind yourself that they are really looking forward to meeting you.
People are always curious about other people,
Aren't they?
Being comfortable when meeting people is something you can learn.
Some people feel that if they don't have something important or clever to say,
Then other people will think they are stupid.
The truth is that really confident people always say really simple things.
Starting with really simple,
Unimportant things like the weather or parking.
Signals to the other person that you are not a threat.
They can relax when you are around.
And that's the most important step in starting a conversation.
Helping the other person to feel confident.
The really confident person you know always aims to say something to put the other person at ease.
And confident people will tell you the simplest way to put someone at ease is to get them to talk about themselves.
Everyone loves talking about themselves,
Don't they?
And when you get people talking about themselves,
This means you can forget about yourself.
You can forget to be nervous.
That shift in your awareness allows you to enjoy relationship tasks and challenges.
And you can begin to notice those little gestures they use that show their interest and kindness.
And you could be surprised at how much you enjoy anticipating that little feeling that comes just before you introduce yourself.
That tells you you are connecting with your own inner self-confidence.
And so you are reminded every time that you are a confident person.
The result is you act so relaxed and comfortable around people that you could find yourself noticing and enjoying that little bit more flair and style that comes from your increased confidence.
Meeting people is something you look forward to.
And afterwards,
You go over in your mind everything you did that made it go so well and so enjoyable.
And you feel good about your performance.
Meeting people makes you feel good.
As this session comes to an end,
In a few moments,
Not now,
You will find yourself feeling stronger,
More powerful,
Different,
And with a deep feeling that something has changed.
You have rediscovered your natural confidence.
You remember how to be confident.
You know what to do in situations.
You have learned to use old skills and new skills,
Haven't you?
And as you come back to present,
As I count,
You can allow yourself to imagine what your days will be like from now on.
See yourself getting up in the morning,
A smile on your face,
Feeling good about the day ahead.
Before you go out,
You check yourself in the mirror.
That confident person smiles back knowingly.
You get to work or somewhere like that and you see how you walk into the room like you own it.
You walk with poise and respect.
You look smart,
Act smart.
You greet everyone and see the respect in their eyes.
You carry yourself a new self-respect.
You know to them you look like a different person.
And inside there is always that little feeling,
The tingle you get that tells you you have changed.
That confidence is bubbling up inside you like a secret laugh you can't suppress.
You are relaxed and comfortable in every situation.
Confident and self-assured.
Because you know you have a choice,
Don't you?
You can choose how you feel,
Can't you?
You always feel confident now,
Don't you?
So now I'm going to start counting from 5 up to 1.
And when I get to 1,
You will be awake,
Feeling great and filled with a new feeling.
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
Eyes open,
Wide awake.
1,
2,
3,
4,
5.
Eyes open,
Wide awake.
