What are some really good tips that can help build one's confidence? originally appeared on Quora, the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.

So many of us struggle with feelings of impostor syndrome and periods where our confidence wanes. That negativity, however, is all in our heads. In order to combat your negative internal critic, there are a number of things that you can do:

* Separate your negative feelings from the facts. Understand that they are just thoughts and not the truth about you. You are strong and capable. Remind yourself when you need to.

* Look at what you’re experiencing from a different angle. There are two sides to every story and not everything is about you. If you are doubting yourself, look outside of yourself and get the extra information you lack.

* Keep a list of all of your accomplishments and positive attributes. Refer back to it when your confidence is having an off-day.

* Come up with your mantra to tell yourself how wonderful you really are.

* Look for opportunities to stretch and grow. When you push yourself, your confidence expands so keep pushing yourself.

* Invest in yourself. Take a course, read a book, get a certification. Knowledge boosts your self-esteem in a major way.

* Practice good self-care. The more well rested and healthy you feel, the more confident you will be as well.

* Set realistic, but challenging, goals for yourself. Don’t bite off more than you can chew right now. You’ll get there eventually. Think of it in terms of baby steps. Grow your confidence a little bit at a time.

* Keep a journal outlining all the great things that are happening in your life (your big wins). The more you focus on the wins, the more confident you’ll become.

* Prepare more. When in doubt, research, prepare, and practice so that you are ready for whatever you need that extra confidence for.

This question originally appeared on Quora.

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