This is a technique that sounds a bit silly when you first hear about it (and doesn't seem at first to get much better as you read on) but WORKS, which is what counts, if you apply it to your life. The idea is to "open" a Confidence Bank Account for yourself. Bear with me on this!

We all feel at times that our confidence could be at a higher level than it is, whether that is in the moment or over a period of time. By using a CBA, we can build our confidence back up to where we would like it to be.

The principle behind the idea is this; every time you do something, big or small, that adds to your self confidence, you make a deposit into your CBA. As you start to do more and more actions that give you confidence, your CBA begins to grow.

You don't need to write down your account but that may be helpful to you. Lay out our account as if it were a real bank account by using a spreadsheet or simply a sheet of paper. Start the account with an opening balance. Decide at what level your confidence is, at present, on a scale of 1 to 10. For every level, give yourself 100 bank credits. In other words, if you rate yourself at 6 on the confidence scale, add 600 points to your CBA.

Now that your account is open, start becoming aware of the things you do in your life that improve your self confidence. This is the key to the technique. It makes you look for the good things you do at times when your focus may be elsewhere.

Every time you notice doing something that is positive, in any area, rate that deed on a scale, and award the points to the account. Not everything we do on a daily basis would have a major impact on us, so be careful not to miss the small things.

A couple of examples of points scoring would be as follows. Let us say that today you have just delivered a presentation at work in front of a sizeable number of your colleagues and strangers from another company. This would be an action that deserves a high number of points, so you could award yourself 200 credits.

On the other hand you also smiled at someone in the supermarket whom you are attracted to. This is not the biggest thing that has happened in your life, but it should be rewarded. Give yourself 25 points. The most important aspect of this system is in encouraging you to spot the small stuff.

As time goes on and your account fills up you will begin to notice an improvement in your level of self confidence. If you find that there are specific areas that you would like to build on, then open a CBA solely aimed at that subject. You could have an account for relationships, work, friends, strangers, anything you decide upon.

Your CBA has no overdraft limit, therefore you can't take out more than you put in. If you do something that you feel has reduced your confidence, don't be too harsh on yourself. Even if what has happened seems like an almighty disaster at the time, just remind yourself that you not only own the account but you own the bank as well.

Try this technique for a few weeks and see if it works for you. Even if you keep the account in your head rather than on paper you should be able to feel a difference in your life.