How To Feel More Confident & Valuable At Work

At work, it's great to feel valued and purposeful, as careers take up a majority of our lives (think of all those hours!) and thoughts. Thus, feeling more confident at work can in turn produce greater productivity, energy, happiness and morale within the team, and these benefits can have drastic long-term effects that can contribute to wellbeing and overall health, advises business experts in interview with Forbes.

As a certified health coach, I work with clients on boosting their self-esteem and sense of drive within the workspace, as enjoying their careers can increase their wellbeing and make them feel happier and more excited to get to the office or tackle a new project each day. When we feel dissatisfied with our occupations, it can take a toll on our wellbeing and health, as tension can make us feel overwhelmed and sadder than usual. Thus, doing whatever it takes to feel like a part of the team and a valued member within the company can instantly create a newfound motivation to get to work each day and to enjoy every (or most, overall) moments of it. Here are 11 ways to be more confident and feel more valuable at work now, so that you can live your life to its very fullest and cherish it wholeheartedly.

1. Think Of The Bigger Picture

Instead of thinking of the daily grind to day-to-day tasks at hand, consider the larger picture and how your duties help strengthen the company as a whole, long-term. "Take a look at what type of impact you are having. See if you can look at the big picture and try to understand the long term impacts of your day to day duties," says licensed marriage and family therapist, Erika Fay, LMFT, over email with me.

2. Think Of Your Part As Unique

"Everyone is unique, and as such, can put a unique spin on any job," says Fay. "Even if it's simple data entry, maybe you can take pride and feel confident in your turn around time for tasks or make it a point to build a reputation for being reliable and a person who can come through in a pinch," she recommends. Think of your piece within the company and how pivotal your job is in order for the other pieces to operate.

3. Own Your Personality

According to Greg Ford, CEO/Co-Founder at TalentClick, over email with me, owning your "Workstyle," as he calls it, through personality assessments, "give you a better understanding on areas of strengths and areas for improvement, training or development. Many companies include these as part of their candidate screening or onboarding processes, similar to our Workstyle & Performance Profile," he says.

4. Work On Leadership & Emotional Skills

"Having a better understanding of your natural Workstyle such as your leadership and emotional orientation can provide you with more insight into how you would respond to feedback from managers and how open to and receptive to coaching you would be," says Ford. It's great to feel like more of a leader and better able to control emotions within a work environment, so working on improving on these measures could be beneficial.

5. Prepare For Work The Night Before

"Improve how you come home from work to in turn improve how you leave for work the next day," says Katie McCann, Maeve's Method Coach, over email with me. "When you come home after a long day, put your shoes in a shoe rack, hang up your coat with the scarf around the hanger, gloves in the pockets and hat in the sleeve and put your car/house keys, phone, train pass and any daily essentials in the same location in your bag, and place your bag in the same location. That way, there will be no need to search for all these elements when you are heading out the next day," she recommends.

6. Get Enough Sleep Regularly

"Studies have shown that not getting enough sleep can affect creativity and the ability to focus. This isn’t surprising considering that it has been demonstrated in other studies that losing just one night of sleep has the same effect on your body as being legally drunk. I can assure you that you are nowhere close to your best at work if you are sleep deprived. If you’re chasing that next promotion, proper sleep can have a major impact on your success," says Martin Rawls-Meehan CEO and Chief Innovation Officer at Reverie over email with me. Get some zzz's to feel more confident and to show greater results.

7. Eat Some Healthy Fats

According to Eugene Kang, CEO and Co-Founder of Country Archer Jerky Co, over email with me, omega 3 fatty acids, and other healthy fats, can boost mood and confidence and help keep the body energized and alert. "Omega 3 fatty-acids that keep our bodies healthy and vibrant," he says, are a great choice for a mid-afternoon snack and lunch. Great sources include fish, olives, avocado, nuts and seeds.

8. Do Yoga

According to professional sports yoga coach Dana Santas, over email with me, yoga and meditation can help boost confidence and lower stress within the body, which can aid in mitigating symptoms of pain, headaches and arthritis. She recommends Happify, an app that can target negative thoughts and pain and provide relief, which in turn can boost your mood and make you feel more positive and confident during the day.

9. Stay In (And Keep Others In) The Loop

"Over-communicate with your peers, boss and clients," says Krisha Buehler, HR manager and culture cultivator at eaHELP over email with me. "Don't leave anything up for assumption. Make sure you keep the lines of communication open and make a point to connect often, daily or several times throughout the work day," she stresses. This will make you feel more confident and valuable at work.

10. Establish A Routine

Having a routine of tasks to do, people to communicate with and emails to get done will make you feel more valuable and secure within your company, advises Buehler. "Have a schedule. Set your alarm in the morning and have some structure in your day. Break for lunch and give yourself an end time," she says. Plus, this lunch time can boost happiness and make you more productive due to the mental break and healthy meal, as noted.

11. Visualize Your Power

According to Anka Wittenberg, Senior Vice President and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at SAP, and contributor for Entrepreneur, visualizing where you want to be in your company, or yourself excelling on a project, for instance, can make you feel more empowered to get there faster and to own your sense of worth within the company. Use this imagery to instill confidence and motivation to be the greatest asset you can be.

Feeling confident and valuable at work can make you feel a sense of purpose and happiness that can translate into other facets of life. When we are pleased with the majority of our day (think of all those long hours at work!), it makes quality of life immensely better and can encourage us to look forward to getting out of bed each morning and heading to work.

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