Instagram can sometimes be intimidating… with other ‘grammers having hundreds of thousands of followers to compare your account to, and oceans of people who seemingly have their sh*t together, living out their ’perfect’ lives, meanwhile you put cereal in the fridge, and milk in the cupboard this morning, after 3 hours of sleep. 

“Is this Instagram worthy?”, “I’m not pretty enough”, “This post got no engagement, I suck.” *hits delete post* – How many times have you experienced these thoughts, or felt your confidence drop? Sometimes, Instagram can really test your sense of self worth, but you’re not alone, it’s super normal to feel these things. However, there are ways to combat it, feel empowered and show up as your best self on Instagram. So, without further ado, here are 10 tips to improve your confidence on Instagram. 

YOU’RE IN CONTROL

BE MINDFUL OF PROFILES YOU’RE EXPOSING YOURSELF TO

MAKE FRIENDS

‘What if she doesn’t reply?’ Oh but what if she does, you become internet besties, then meet IRL and book a holiday together!? (YES! This happens!).

This is such a huge factor in managing external impacts which may affect your confidence using Instagram. It is within your power to either open your feed and scroll through images of people who make you feel sh*t and not enough, OR through the images and messages of people who make you feel inspired, represented and empowered. Choose wisely who you expose yourself to, opt for those who boost your confidence. I’m a big advocate of regular feed clear-outs, every so often I’ll scroll through and unfollow anyone who makes me feel some negative way. 

One of the best things about Instagram is the amazing amount of people we can connect with! You can search a hashtag which is aligned with your interests, and connect with others who share those passions too! So say hey! Sometimes, part of feeling low in confidence, is because you haven’t been surrounded by people who are good for you, in real life, but you can totally build up that community and find your tribe online! 

USE INSTAGRAM AS A TOOL FOR POSITIVITY

Use this powerful little app positively, follow amazing, inspiring people brands, and publications. Follow pages which will boost your confidence like female empowerment and self esteem pages filled with quotes; follow pages aligned with your hobbies, like photography or art and pages which educate, such as Ted or CNN.

MANAGE YOUR MINDSET

YOU’RE MORE THAN A NUMBER

I know those numbers can often have you questioning your worth, how many times have you thought ‘I got hardly any likes’, ‘my following is small’? Well, just remember you are WAY more than a number! When you clock yourself thinking this way, switch up your mindset. Remind yourself of all of the reasons why you are amazing… maybe you’re a good listener? You’re good at hockey, or you’re the world’s best big sister? Those numbers aren’t so crushing now are they? Also! give yourself a pat on that back, because even if you have 500 people following you, that’s FIVE HUNDRED PEOPLE! 500 people are interested in YOU and your life! That’s pretty cool!

STOP COMPARING YOUR REAL LIFE TO SOMEBODY ELSE’S HIGHLIGHT REEL

It’s natural human instinct to compare ourselves to others, it’s actually part of evolution, however the birth of Instagram and social media has taken this instinct to a whole new level! Rather than making comparisons to people who are in the same environment as us, we now see hundreds of thousands of different people with different lives and incomes every day. To make that worse, no body shows us the imperfect, messy ‘real’ parts of our lives, just the filtered, curated and even edited highlights. How do we stand a chance when we compare our real lives to their highlight reels? Well, once you know that, you can remind yourself the moment you catch yourself slipping. Everybody else’s lives are just as messy and real, behind the curation, as yours. 

STOP LOOKING FOR VALIDATION THROUGH AN APP

Ultimately, the only validation you need, is that from yourself. If you find yourself seeking validation from an app, and not reaping the comfort and acceptance you want, then you need to look within. It’s time to start practicing self acceptance and learning to self love, because when you try to find validation outside of yourself, especially from something which is powered by numbers and ‘perfection’, you will NEVER find the feeling you’re after, because it’s ever changing, and your confidence will take blow after blow. 

 

GET PRACTICAL

PRACTICE POSING 

Everyone feels a little (slight understatement!?) uncomfortable having their picture taken to start with, I still do! But the more time you spend in front of the camera, the more natural it starts to feel. It really is a case of practice makes perfect, the more you practice posing and figuring out what angles work for you, the more and more you’re going to love the results and get excited about posting those snaps on the gram! Have fun with it! Use it as a means of expression, getting creative or sharing a piece of your world with others!

PLAY DRESS UP!

There’s no denying how killer a new LBD or lipstick can make you feel! So when you’re taking photos for your Insta, be sure to dress in what makes you feel amazing!

BUT also, don’t be scared to be real too! We’re all craving a bit of realness, so if you want to show up in your PJs, then DO IT! I guarantee people will love you for that, too!

PLAN & SCHEDULE YOUR POSTS  

Planning your content, organising your posts, being thoughtful about your captions and having the timings all planned out breeds so much more confidence. How often do you do the whole “Oh crap I need to post!”, *pulls last minute photo from camera roll*, “Is this even Instagram worthy? Ehhh I have nothing else!” OH HEY INSTAGRAM ANXIETY and the next hour of debating whether to even post under the pressure of the algorithm. Cut this daily confidence tester out by being more prepared – I promise, it’s a game changer. 

JUST BE YOU!

Ultimately, please just remember that you are you and that is your power! People follow YOU for a reason, because they like to see what YOU’RE about, and see what YOU get up to, they share their passions with YOU. So just be confident and own you and your story, don’t try to be like anybody else or get lost in an Instagram trend because the beauty is in your originality and you deserve to be seen!

Christina xx

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