Confidence
Confidence really is your best feature.
Do what you need to feel confident and look your best.
By Rexanne Mancini

Guns Blazing - Photograph of Liz La Point by Terry Osterhout

Confidence is not ego or self importance. Confidence in yourself is a vital necessity if you want to make an impact in this lifetime. Ladies are naturally confident. Sure, it could be a question of what comes first, being a lady or having confidence in the lady in you, but the point here is that once you know how to act and look like a lady, you will develop natural confidence and if you're just learning to be the best lady you can be, assuming an air of confidence is a good start.

Confidence is knowing you look your best and that you can interact in any given situation with class, grace, kindness, dignity and style.

Loving and appreciating yourself is key to having confidence. If you are harboring ideas that "loving yourself" is bad, egocentric or vain, please stop and consider how much your mother loved (and possibly still loves) you and treat yourself accordingly.

If you treat yourself with kindness, consideration and respect, you will find that life becomes sweeter and more fulfilling. Many roadblocks to success in all aspects of life crumble in the face of this powerful statement you make when you are comfortable loving the essence that is you.

If you would like to have self-confidence but feel it is silly to love yourself, what will you be confident about? Confidence and loving yourself go hand in hand, ladies and I urge you to drop all negative feelings about yourselves, whether it is grumbling over the condition of your nails, your hair or excess body fat. Learning to love our imperfections is vital and a big step in gaining self-confidence. If you then lose those extra 20 pounds or find a hairdresser who "gets" you and makes your hair look its best, great ... those little extras will only enhance the confidence you have developed in the core of your being.

When you love yourself, you will take care of yourself, which, in turn, will serve to enhance your overall well-being. Being well-groomed and having a wardrobe that works for your life are good places to begin taking care of yourself.

Taking care of your body and maintaining optimum health is another absolute must that will increase your self-confidence and make it easier for you to admire the person that is you. The synergy of loving oneself, being healthy, well-groomed and well-dressed is huge and powerful.

If you are having a hard time with the concept of loving yourself, I highly recommend reading You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay. This is an easy-to-read, very helpful guide to being in harmony with your total self.

If you're having health issues, look into all possible treatments for your condition and feel the best you can while getting help for whatever ails you. This is an especially important time to be loving yourself. Confidence (loving yourself) has been known to heal many conditions.

Both of these books have been instrumental in keeping my daughters and me sane, healthy and able to create the fulfilled life I wish for all of you. Another book I highly recommended on this site is Emily Post Guide to Etiquette - Knowing exactly what to do in any situation will boost your confidence immensely and being a lady is all about etiquette. Not your grandmother's idea of etiquette although much your grandmother tried to teach you still holds true. Emily Post Guide to Etiquette is a new, updated edition that incorporates a lot of "new" etiquette for 21st century life.