Think about it, Do you know that there are a ton of advantages of being assertive? If living in your truth, being your genuine self, and thriving in your attempts to pursue your goals is a big deal to you, then being assertive is essential.

Consider the way your life is at this point in time. How are things going? Do you honestly feel happy with your private life as well as your professional life?

Cultivating your assertiveness skills is important and can help you to better organize and manage your life.

What Does It Mean To Be Assertive?

If you’re wondering what it means to be assertive, it simply means to stand up for yourself and others without being hostile or offensive. It allows you to be bold and helps to remove the feeling of being timid or weak in your response.  

Assertiveness is a skill that will serve you well when communicating with others. When you’re confident and strong there’s no way you’ll not be tagged as a pushover.

You communicate what you think, what you believe in and how you feel in a straightforward way. That doesn’t mean that you throw respect for the other person out the window.

In the same way, you want others to respect you, you can also make your point clear and make people understand what you’re saying while being considerate and respectful of others.

Importance Of Assertiveness

Being assertive is a very important aspect in life. The thing is, Being bold and decisive can lead to tons of benefits.

It will enable you to be more confident and improve your relationships. It also positively impacts your mental health and your overall happiness and well-being. 

Advantages Of Being Assertive

There are numerous advantages of being assertive. For starters, your confidence and self-esteem will benefit greatly. It will get a boost and soar through the roof. Here are some other major benefits included below.

1. Improves Your Communication Skills

Being assertive and communicating go hand in hand. If you want to be assertive, there is no way you can keep things bottled up inside.

You must be upfront and express to others how you feel, your preferences, and what you need while at the same time being respectful of the views of other people.

2. Improves Decision-Making Capability

If you’re assertive it goes a long way in helping you to be on good terms with other people. Being firm and bold empowers you to have an effective voice on the path to your personal and professional life.

It enables you to take on challenges and make tough decisions. It’s a great way to make your presence felt. When you’re decisive it also helps to keep you safe from difficult and dangerous situations.

This also allows you to stand up for yourself and not take crap from other people when you’re pressured into doing things that you feel awkward with or disturbed about.

If you’re not assertive you will be swayed in every and any direction.

3. Builds Self-Confidence and Self- Esteem

Standing up for yourself is a form of taking action. This helps to put you in the driver’s seat of the situation. If you’re firm and speak up for yourself; instead of rolling over and play dead, it can definitely help to shape the outcome of the situation.

Once you realize that when you’re assertive and stand up and be counted it will boost your self-confidence and self-esteem.

It will also motivate you to keep going as it helps you to get the result that you want or at least lets your voice be heard.

4. Gain Respect

You do have the right to state how you feel. Being assertive is not about being aggressive at all. But, how you communicate and try to your point across to others does make a big difference.

When you’re upfront and clear about your views, intentions, and actions without being aggressive, surely it will foster mutual respect.

It provides a chance for you to be heard and understood. When you’re confident about your feelings and your opinions and express them in that way, it will urge others to respect them and you.

5. Builds Better Relationships

To be able to be yourself and feel like the other person understands you lead to meaningful relationships. Expressing yourself in an honest and clear and upfront way while being respectful to the other person is introducing assertiveness into your relationships.

This can only do well for the relationship as it helps to minimize conflicts and arguments and strengthen both your personal and professional relationships.

If you clam up in your relationships, then the other person can only make assumptions if you don’t express your thoughts or your needs and it can push your loved ones away.

6. Increase in Job Satisfaction

Contrary to popular belief assertiveness is not being aggressive. Being assertive on the job puts your communication skills on full display and that’s an excellent advantage.

Because this enables you to tackle customer issues as well as other issues in your department directly and with determination to find a solution instead of avoiding them.

Having Assertive communication at your place of work can help with your job performance ,productivity and the best part? it helps to reduces stress.

This is because if you’re not clear about something you’ll ask for an explanation or to clarify the instructions you need to complete a project or your job responsibilities. you’re even confident in such a way that you can also make decisions on your own when necessary.

7. You’re In Touch With your Emotions

Because you’re confident, decisive and honest when you speak up, it drives you to be in touch with your emotions. It really allows you to dig deep and express how you really feel about a particular situation.

Even if the other person is shouting you might be tempted to do the same. But don’t give in to that. Take your time to respond with a calm and direct approach.

Your thoughts are not a part of the equation in this instance. It’s your emotions that are important in this situation..

Your mind is clear as to how you feel and on how you want your voice to be heard. Being sure of yourself will enable you to see there’s no need to hold anything back. But it will propel you express your feelings without casting blame on anyone or being disrespectful.

How Can You Improve Your Assertiveness?

Just like most things in life assertiveness has to be learned and developed. If you’re not satisfied with where you are right now, look at the bright side!

The good thing is that if you’re committed to being assertive and put it into practice you can change your mentality. Without a doubt, it will allow your true authentic self, that’s lined up with your goals and values to shine through.

Here are some ways to help you improve your assertiveness:

1. Identify Your Priorities

There are so many tasks that are screaming for your attention every day. Set clear priorities so that you’re not overwhelmed.

In this way, you can better manage your time. And, where you can assert yourself take decisive action to take care of those priorities.

2. Set  Boundaries

You have to be firm when it comes to setting your boundaries. If someone tries to cross the borders that you have set in place, don’t be intimidated but boldly speak up and let them know that it’s not okay and that you’ll not accept it.

If you remain quiet and don’t say what’s on your mind, it could affect you physically or emotionally. Put boundaries in place and stand your ground.

3. Maintain A Positive Posture And Eye Contact

When you have a positive stance when you’re communicating shows that you’re strong and confident.  In addition to that, maintaining eye contact in combination with using a firm tone (not raising your voice) will let others know what you’re about.

It doesn’t mean that you’re aggressive. In fact,  it indicates that you’re bold and not fearful at all and that you want to be heard.

4. Be Comfortable With Saying No

The fact of the matter is, there’s no need for you to apologize for saying no. When it comes to the demands of your time, money, or your other resources by others, don’t be afraid to say no.

And, you really don’t need to explain why. If they insist, just let them know that you’re not able to, it’s just not possible, and refuse to give in to their line of reasoning.

5. Be Honest And Direct

Be calm and Share your feelings, thoughts, beliefs, and intentions without being insulting. Just be frank and upfront about it.

Even though other people have a different point of view than yours, there’s no need to be offensive. If it’s a case where you have to compromise then do so and find a common ground where the outcome is mutually beneficial.

6. Write a Script

If you’re really nervous or scared and having difficulty in getting your point across then it’s useful to jot it down on paper.

In this way, it makes it easier to focus on what you have to say. It also gives you a chance to collect your thoughts and makes it possible for you to be more fluent because you can practice what you have to say.

Resort to ‘I’ Statements

  When you use ‘I’ statements others don’t have to guess or try to figure out what’s on your mind. After all, only you know how you feel. This helps you to clearly state what’s on your mind.

The thing is, you can’t assume what the other person thinks or feel. Surely, you’ll only be assuming. Let the other person know how you truly feel instead of blaming them.

When you direct your attention to how you feel instead of your point of view on the issue at hand. For instance, you’d say I need your help, instead of you never help with anything. These ‘I’ statements it doesn’t come off as being offensive and malicious.

Assertiveness Affirmations

  • I am assertive.
  • I can firmly take control of any situation when necessary.
  • I must stand up for myself.
  • I speak my mind.
  • I tell others how I honestly feel without being disrespectful.
  • I am confident when speaking to others.
  • I firmly set boundaries.
  • I express myself honestly.
  • I will develop assertiveness to improve my life.
  • I value my beliefs and opinions.
  • I say no whenever I need to.
  • I don’t need to feel bad when I ask for what I deserve.

Conclusion On Advantages Of Being Assertive

Being assertive is not about pushing demands on others or you have a do things my way attitude. That’s not the case at all. It’s all about expressing your thoughts while at the same time respecting the views of other people.

This way of expressing yourself allows you to be clear and direct when you communicate with other people without being aggressive or rude.

When you’re not assertive you will take any kind of crap from people. Even if you’re mistreated you don’t speak out and take a stand.

If you have a problem being assertive, then it might be an indication that your self-confidence and self-esteem is low or you have a fear of engaging socially.

It’s important to be assertive in life, it’s so necessary.

Are you assertive? How do you demonstrate your assertiveness? Comment below!