7 Traits of Confident Managers
Managers who exude confidence give employees a sense of security. Some ways to project confidence include maintaining direct eye contact, good posture, positive facial expressions and a professional appearance. Those practices convey someone who is composed, secure and trustworthy.
One of the most important ways to communicate confidence is through body language. Your body language often indicates confidence in your management ability better than anything you could say. However, words still matter.
When speaking, managers’ words should reinforce a confident image. Start by using direct and positive language. When you meet someone new, whether in person or over the phone, always give your name. A personal introduction emphasizes that you respect yourself and signals that others should pay attention to what you have to say.
Read on for more ideas:
- Be gracious and genuine. Insecure people often deflect compliments, so accept praise graciously. Be appreciative and always give due credit to your team. Giving praise breeds confidence, and the ability to receive accolades is a sign of solid self-esteem. Show genuine appreciation for a gift or compliment. That conveys you know you and your accomplishments should be valued.
- Avoid self-promotion. Bragging isn’t necessary to garner external approval. True confidence stems from being internally secure. People who boast call attention to themselves because they don’t feel worthy of respect. Instead, share your accomplishments with ways others have helped you.
- Accentuate the positive. Maintain a positive tone in conversation, and don’t unload your problems and stress on others. Stay positive, and discuss only constructive ways to fix problems. That moves your team away from negative thinking and keeps the mood light. When tempted to criticize or complain, find a way to turn your thoughts in a positive direction before you speak.
- Address challenges directly. Counter doubt and fear with positive action. It’s natural to doubt oneself from time to time, but dwelling on difficulties makes them seem bigger and harder to overcome. The best antidote for doubt is to increase your level of productive activity. Don’t over-analyze a situation; get up and act. By working on constructive activities, your mind will focus on solutions instead of problems. Your team will notice and model the behavior.
- Believe. Confident managers see everything as an opportunity. Confidence is contagious, so half the battle is to realize you are a confident manager and let that attitude shine through.
