How confidence coaching can help 18-30 year olds

Life coaching is a valuable service for all ages. The potential benefits can bring many positive changes to an individual's life. There is, however, a growing recognition that coaching can be particularly valuable for people aged 18–30 as they navigate the transition into adulthood and working life.

Since setting up my coaching practice, I quickly noticed the number of young adults who were approaching me for help. Generations evolve; we grow up with different things and in turn face different challenges. Many of my clients were coming to me with the same challenges - low social confidence. 

What is low social confidence and where does it come from?

Before we dig deeper, let's first try to understand why this is a common challenge for this age range. I have just vacated this age category, and I started to see the shift in society.

We now live in a technological age; we can speak to anyone in the world in a matter of seconds through the use of social media apps, emails, etc. For many, it's the 'easiest' way of communicating with others, pushing the traditional methods of conversing, face to face or even via phone, down the pecking order.

It becomes a habit to visit social media frequently throughout the day, endlessly scrolling and scrolling! You intended to go on for five minutes and then glance at the clock, and an hour has passed! Now, I'm not going to sit here and slate social media because it has enriched a lot of people's lives and made huge differences for many. My point is that our increasingly digital world has introduced some new challenges alongside many of its benefits.

Comparing your life to others

This comes up a lot. It is so easy to scroll through a news feed and become overwhelmed with everyone's posts. Someone you went to school with has just landed their dream job and has just bought their first house. Meanwhile, you're still trying to figure out your 'ideal' career and still living with your parents. Now, this is just one example but you get my drift, right?

The truth is that everyone develops at different ages and reaches milestones at different points in life - your time will come if you make it happen.

The problem is, at a younger age in your life, you are still developing your resilience, still developing your feelings, and thought processes.

Struggling to talk to new people (or even familiar people) face to face

Now, it's true there may always be a small amount of apprehension when speaking to new people. You want to make the right impression. Talking to people in person or on a phone call is different from talking on a message. Messaging allows you time; you don't have to reply straight away, giving you time to think about what you're going to say.

But you don't get this luxury when speaking to someone 'live ', as I like to call it! I have spoken to many of my clients about this, and many describe feeling less confident in face-to-face conversations because so much communication now happens through messaging and social media.

Not knowing what you want from your career

Moving on from technology, this one has been around for ages. How many of us knew what we wanted to do when we left school? I didn't! A good confidence coach (or career coach) can help you understand your strengths and transferable skills very quickly. This is so important! There are thousands and thousands of jobs out there, all requiring different ranges of skills.

Although I had no idea what I wanted to do when I left school, I did know I wanted to help others. I also knew that I wanted to run my own business someday. My point is that if you can identify and be confident in the skills or personality traits you possess, it will make your search for your ideal job a lot easier!

What can confidence coaching do for you?

Being confident is not arrogant. Confidence is being sure of yourself and your abilities. This is what a confidence coach can help you understand. The coach will help you understand your current qualities and skills, and help you to identify new ones.

As your confidence grows, many things begin to feel more manageable to work on things such as holding conversations with new people and applying for your dream job. Your coach will keep you accountable for your goals and progress, encouraging and supporting you along the way. They should be able to motivate you and, crucially, help you get to a point where you can motivate yourself.

The question to ask yourself is this: "What could I do if I had confidence in myself?"

For some, it would be the ability to grab their dream job, giving them the potential to afford the house they've always wanted to live in. For others, it may simply be the ability to talk to new people and meet new friends. Confidence doesn't mean never feeling nervous or uncertain. It means trusting yourself enough to keep moving forward, even when things feel unfamiliar. Whatever your goals, building confidence can open doors that once felt out of reach.