Part 3: 6 Tips to Change How People Perceive You

Just last night you imagined all the possible outcomes to your critical meeting and the day has finally arrived. As you prepare yourself, your racing thoughts and heart-pumping adrenaline soon lead the way to that butterfly feeling in your stomach.

How do I look? What do I say? What will they think?

Thankfully, most of our daily interactions are not as important or nerve-racking as the above scenario, but we have all been there. However, it is fair to say that we do all care about how other people will perceive us and the impression we will leave behind.

So if you're an anxious person who is always worried about what other people think, or a confident person who's not quite sure if they are projecting arrogance, below are six mindful ways to change how people perceive you.

1. Define Your Story, Express Your Style

Embracing your style starts with determining the story that you want to tell the world and more importantly, yourself. Many times, what your inner world is feeling, leads to how you portray yourself to the outside world. Using it as your beacon, visualize what success looks like for you, how you see yourself and where you want to go in life. Empower your feeling of confidence by taking the time to get dressed truly. When we feel great in our outfits and show others that we pay attention to detail, we can walk into a room confidently with our shoulders held high, and people will take notice. Your appearance is the first thing people notice and judge you on before you even say a word.

2. Project Confidence - NOT Arrogance

Stand tall, shoulders back, make eye contact, give a firm handshake, smile more, and aim to give off a pleasant and approachable vibe. Remember, giving off a confident and robust vibe does not mean being non-approachable or insensitive. If for some reason you’re a confident person, but realize that relationships are not cultivating past your initial interactions, then maybe you should self analyze your approach by being mindful. Everyone loves to be around confident people, but only if they are approachable and radiate kindness.

3. Be Genuinely Intrigued And Curious About Their Story

Adjust to your environment and be prepared to engage with all types of people, keeping in mind that there is something to learn from everyone. Genuinely listen and remember things when engaged in conversation. People love it when you ask questions. It shows interest, and they get to share their stories with you leading to a deeper connection and more likeability. Truly listen to what they are saying and express genuine interest.

4. Don't Complain or Bad Mouth Others

It's normal to discuss other peoples social behavior with our close tribe of family and friends. We human beings are tribal. However, social circles can be inclusive, and when in public, don't discuss others. When another person doesn't know you so well, this only leads them to perceive you as a negative and untrustworthy person who may say the same things about them. Stay away from gossip; it doesn't do anything good for your subconscious spirit either. Surround yourself with positivity.

5. Be Your Best Self - Your Alter Ego If You Must

Many times projecting our best self over our average self is merely the battle between our conscious and subconscious mind. A mental technique that works well to combat self-doubt is to create a high performing alter ego of yourself. Many people would view this alter ego as how their superhero self would react in the given scenario, thus allowing them to disconnect from their average everyday persona and tap into a sort of a role play. The exciting thing is that ultimately that superhero and better version of ourselves is really us, and has always been there!

6. Follow Through With Others And Maintain Integrity

Show up and follow through with a promise. If you said you would attend the event, then show up. Put yourself out there and create some movement for a potential opportunity. If you said, you would follow up with an email, send it through and keep your integrity intact.

Keeping in mind the above tips, and putting forth a little effort helps you build long relationships, repair bad impressions and reach your desired level of success.