Pearl Nash
What makes a woman classy and composed? Is it who she associates with? Her wealth? What she wears? Her way of speaking? Her status in life? Her career? Her family? Her looks?
While we do have different definitions of how classy and composed women should look like, their habits do overlap.
We will explore those similarities today.
Here are 9 habits of women who stay classy and composed at all times.
1) She works on her self-confidence
What you see: A woman who steps inside a room full of confidence, undeterred by anyone’s gaze. You see a woman who stepped into her power that it became impossible not to look at her.
She commands the room, the spotlight isn’t even necessary when she walks in.
She shines bright.
What she actually does: She works on her self-confidence. Constantly, continuously. She builds herself up because she knows that no one else can do the work for her.
What you see is only a portion of what she invested in herself. And that is it, an investment in oneself.
A classy and composed woman is one who worked on and continues to work on her confidence.
2) She speaks thoughtfully
What you hear: Her carefully chosen words. Her earnestness when speaking. The way she seemingly gets to the root of a problem without much resistance. How she doesn’t say what she doesn’t mean.
What she actually does: She speaks with intent. She speaks with empathy.
And what is empathy? “[It’s] the ability to recognize, understand, and share the thoughts and feelings of another person, animal, or fictional character. Developing empathy is crucial for establishing relationships and behaving compassionately.
“It involves experiencing another person’s point of view, rather than just one’s own, and enables prosocial or helping behaviors that come from within, rather than being forced.” says Psychology Today.
So, this woman? She sees your point of view, she considers it. It’s why whatever she says comes from a place of discernment. She won’t be the type to speak just because.
3) She has good posture
What you see and what she does: Her good posture. She remains poised in whatever it is she’s doing.
A composed and classy woman understands the power of good posture. She keeps her head up and her back straight, you will rarely catch her in bad form.
She understands what Rush University’s blog is saying, “Slouching makes it easier to think negative thoughts, while sitting or standing in a strong, upright position encourages empowering thoughts. Standing tall instead of scrunching up also means that you occupy more space and radiate more energy to others, which in turn can make you feel more confident.”
4) She handles criticism with grace and dignity
What you see: Her unfazed reaction to criticism. Remaining dignified in the face of criticism or blame. The way she can brush it off.
What she actually does: She has an unshakeable calmness about her which allows her to remain objective even in the face of criticism. She can separate her feelings from the harsh words.
Does this mean she lets everything pass? Even disrespect? No. Far from it.
However, she won’t lose her composure. You won’t catch her losing sleep over anyone’s malice, she will keep her chin up.
5) She is graceful, even under pressure
What you see: Her unshakeable gracefulness. Her calmness. Her lack of panic when things go awry. Her keeping her cool.
What she actually does: She continues to be adaptable and resilient. She remembers all that she has overcome and this calms her.
She reminds herself that she is more than her panic and that she is even more capable than she could ever imagine. This knowledge keeps her calm and composed.
6) She remains optimistic
What you see: Her ability to see the good in everything. Her ability to discover the silver linings. Her ability to not let the possibility of failure stop her from trying. Her ability to believe that things will work itself out.
What she actually does:
VeryWellMind defines optimism as “Optimism is a mental attitude characterized by hope and confidence in success and a positive future. Optimists tend to view hardships as learning experiences or temporary setbacks. Even the most miserable day holds the promise for them that “tomorrow will probably be better.”
She believes that she is capable of overcoming whatever unfolds— she has done so before and she will do so again. She remains hopeful.
She remains optimistic in the face of hardship.
And the optimism didn’t come from being naive, it came from knowing she’s weathered life’s storms before and survived.
7) She takes her time in making decisions
What you see: Her discernment and patience.
What she actually does: She sees the big picture and yet sees the details as well.
She calmly weighs the pros and cons and the likely outcomes. She will not panic, she will not overthink, and she is settled in the knowledge that her decision is something she can stand behind.
This certainty makes her look composed.
8) She stands her ground
What you see: Her courage, the way she doesn’t back down. The way she bravely fights for what is right. The way she asserts her rights and boundaries and those of others should she need to. (She will never impose, though.)
What she actually does: She is living by her truth and moral compass, and it becomes an easier and easier decision to fight for that truth.
Her empathy is also in spades and so seeing other people’s pain shakes her soul. It pushes her to act.
She also understands these words from Michelle Obama, “Don’t let anyone speak for you, and don’t rely on others to fight for you.”
And so, she fights.
9) She never settles
What you see: Her firm decisions. Her refusal to settle for anything less than she deserves.
What she actually does: She chooses herself, constantly and consistently. She knows what she wants, she understands the concept of never undermining one’s needs.
She has set her non-negotiables. She knows her worth and she will not settle for anything less than what she deserves.
Final thoughts
As always with these kinds of articles, this isn’t to deter people but to encourage. Should one choose to, it shows the possibility of being the composed and classy woman I talked about here.
This woman was not born with this disposition, she worked on it, she worked through it. She became it.
And you can, too.
