Just about everybody will suffer from a lack of confidence at some time. Having a set of simple exercises you can practice during these times is an invaluable aid to getting your confidence level back on track as quickly as possible.

Here are seven things you can do to boost or maintain your confidence.

1. Practice correct posture. This might not sound like it's obviously related to confidence, but how you sit and how you stand sends a message out to those around you. If that message radiates confidence out from you, you will get positive vibes back which will bolster your confidence. So, learn to stand like you have confidence and sit like you have confidence.

2. Surround yourself with confident and positive people. It may seem self-evident, but if you are consistently mixing with people of low self-esteem, this is going to rub off on you. Conversely, if the people around you are upbeat and assured, this will tend to create a positive atmosphere that you will benefit from.

3. Remember a time when you felt confident. Confidence is a feeling, and if you've felt it once, you can feel it again. Remembering back to a time when you felt confident and in control will enable you to re-experience that feeling and help to put you in a confident frame of mind.

4. Practice. Whatever it is you want to feel confident about, practice it as often as you can. When you work on something until you could do it in your sleep, you can't fail to be confident in your ability to perform when it matters.

5. Think about all of the things you like about yourself and all of the things you know you do well. If you have any trouble doing this, think about the compliments you get from people - what are they telling you - you do well? It's a good idea to write these things down so you'll have them to refer to when your confidence is flagging and you need some inspiration.

6. Don't give yourself a hard time. Don't be your own worst critic, be your own best friend. After all, if a friend of yours was going through a tough time, you wouldn't get on their case, would you? No, of course you wouldn't. Positive self-talk can be one of your best weapons for confidence-boosting, so make sure you cultivate the habit.

7. Don't be afraid to take risks. If you become a regular risk-taker you'll find that it's inevitable that you'll grow in confidence as a result. There really is nothing like forcing yourself out of your comfort zone to increase your confidence. It will also serve to reduce your fear of the unknown, which can be a great confidence-sapper.

Remember, you do have talents and abilities. Make sure you give yourself due credit for these on a regular basis and this will prove to be the very best springboard for building unstoppable confidence.