How can you boost your confidence?

Chris asks mental health expert Olivia Remes...

Olivia - I do. It’s the best exercise ever and I think everyone at home should try it as well because you’ll feel a lot more confident, a lot more powerful. It only takes 30 seconds to 2 minutes so I would like everyone at home and everyone in the studio to please stand up.

Chris - Off you go. I’m going to do this as well. So what now?

Olivia - You want to place your feet about a metre apart.

Chris - A metre! That’s quite…

Olivia - Yes, about a metre apart. Put your hands on your hips, pull your shoulders back and lift your chin. This is called the wonder woman pose. Now keep this four about 30 second to 2 minutes and, essentially, the background…

Chris - Are we allowed to breath Olivia?

Olivia - You’re allowed to breath. So basically, when we feel powerful, when we feel confident, our bodies expand, we take up more space, we spread out. But also, if you’re not feeling that way, if you’re feeling a little but insecure, you can trick your mind into thinking that you are actually powerful and confident and the way to do that is to do the wonder woman pose. This can decrease your stress hormone levels, it can increase your assertiveness hormone levels, and it just leaves you feeling more confident.

Chris - To people driving, don’t try that obviously. But guys, do sit down. Tell us, has that worked, do you now feel imbued with confidence ahead of the programme?

Sarah - Absolutely, yeah. It’s worked wonders.

Simon - I was a bit worried we were going to go into the Rocky Horror there.

Chris - But what actually is the rationale Olivia for doing this? Is it that it puts you in this because it’s making you adopt a posture which would be “associated,” using your word their Simon, with power - it makes you feel more potent even if you’re not, is that the rationale?

Olivia - That’s absolutely true. In the animal kingdom, and also when we’re looking at humans, animals that feel powerful, chimpanzees that feel powerful. Also humans when they feel very powerful they just naturally adopt these expansive postures. If you’re not feeling like that, you tend to slouch, you tend to fall into yourself and a way to trick your mind into thinking otherwise, a way to fake it until you become it, is to adopt this posture.

Chris - Fake it till you make it?

Olivia - Exactly. Fake it till you make it. This is all based on research from Harvard, and the person who did this looked at the participants who adopted these postures and she measured their stress hormone levels and all sorts of other things. They took more risks, felt more confident, all sorts of positive benefits.