I see plenty of books around in self-help sections about boosting your own confidence. How would you go about boosting someone else’s confidence though?
This is fodder for the In My Humble Opinion forum, not General Questions. I’ll move it.
bibliophage
moderator GQ
Nearly the same technique that caused them to have poor self confidence in the first place. That is, the person has probably been belittled and insulted, or just ignored in the past, leading to a skewed perspective on their own worth.
Sincere compliments, pay attention (but don’t put them on the spot). In short, pretty much like normal, but make sure they know that they’re appreciated.
Of course, this is all just from me, not any established psychological source.
Confidence comes from competence. Knowing how to do some things well will automatically build confidence.
Which would you rather give a book report on, a book you love and have read many times, or a book you had to read in a big rush and didn’t really understand?