Joyce Ann Isidro
Has anyone ever told you to “break a leg” or “bring home the bacon”?
It would probably be a little easier to do that in the literal sense of the word, especially if you have no idea how to do your best.
In those moments, have you ever wished someone was there for you to help you achieve your best self?
Well, in this article, we’ll teach you how to be that person for others, so you could help them break the metaphorical leg and bring home the metaphorical bacon.
Let’s jump in!
1) Make them feel comfortable around you
You probably find it hard to find people to be comfortable around. I know I do.
That’s because as people, we all have insecurities.
But here’s the thing: having insecurities is completely normal. If you don’t have them, are you even human?
So why do we feel the need to constantly perform a facade of perfection in front of others?
These tendencies are precisely why it’s so important that you know how to make other people comfortable around you.
Because in order to be our best selves, we first and foremost need to feel comfortable and safe to be our true selves.
So don’t make other people feel like they need to be perfect around you. Let them know you accept them for who they are completely, warts and all.
After all, flaws and insecurities are natural. These are the essence of being people, and they shouldn’t hinder us in becoming our best selves.
Maybe appreciating these flaws and imperfections in others could even help them reach their full potential.
2) Appreciate them
The world is full of cruel, judgmental people.
A lot of us keep judging and criticizing each other for the tiniest, most trivial things. But we don’t appreciate each other enough.
However, in order to become our best selves, we need our efforts acknowledged and appreciated.
And this is what you must do in order to bring out the best in others.
Always try to acknowledge people’s efforts, and not just the ones they do for you, but the things they do for others as well.
Do they get out of their way to make other people feel nice and comfortable around them?
Do they always try to validate other people’s feelings, especially when that person feels like no one really gets them?
Whatever it is, it’s imperative that you never take their actions for granted and their efforts unappreciated.
Compliment them sincerely for the things that they do for everyone. Trust me, it will go a long way in helping them grow.
It can even build their confidence over time.
3) Help them build their confidence
All of us feel self-doubt sometimes. It’s perfectly normal and completely valid.
What’s important is to not let ourselves constantly fall into a pit of self-wallowing, letting our self-doubt cripple us from achieving our goals because we’re too afraid of failure.
Want to know something interesting?
The reason why so many people fail is not because of a lack of intelligence or capability, but a lack of confidence.
That’s why if you want to bring out the best in others, you must help them build their confidence.
Let them know they’re capable of achieving their goals and reaching their dreams. Help them remember past successes. Remind them of the challenges they were able to survive.
Letting them know they’re worthy will push them one step forward towards reaching their fullest potential. Just keep believing in them, and soon they’ll bloom like flowers in spring.
4) Believe in them
As people, we all need to feel we’re worthy. We need to have a purpose in order to keep living.
However, it’s completely human to feel unworthy and incapable sometimes. I myself have had moments of self-doubt and wallowing, where I felt like my life had no purpose at all.
And it’s my friends who helped pull me out of that pit of self-wallowing. God knows I never could’ve done it all on my own.
So when you have a chance to make someone feel worthy, take it. Let them know you believe in them. Help them realize that they are more than capable of succeeding. Trust me: it will go a long way.
Because sometimes, all we need is someone to believe in us in order to succeed.
5) Ask them questions
Every time I’m with other people, I find that I make the most interesting, profound connections when I ask them questions about their lives.
Perhaps it’s because I prefer listening over telling my own stories, but the point still stands: asking people questions makes them feel important and interesting. Because who doesn’t like having someone to tell your life stories to?
And in order to bring out the best in others, it’s important that you know who they are. This will help you give the right kind of advice that will set them on their path to success.
So let them know you’re curious about them. Give them an outlet to express how they feel about their life at the moment.
Make sure not to ask questions that are too personal and uncomfortable, though.
Knowing someone cares about them and their lives will not only make them feel interesting and important, but will also make them feel loved and cared for.
And sometimes, that’s all we need to motivate us to keep dreaming, to keep working our way to success.
However, while support is important, constructive criticism is just as necessary for us to achieve the best version of ourselves.
6) Constructively criticize them when needed
Everyone needs constructive criticism, even if it can be hard to accept.
This is why you need to call out people for their bad behavior in order to help them grow as people.
Why?
Because if we’re surrounded by yes-men who do nothing but enable our bad behavior, we’ll never reach our fullest potential.
And if you truly care about them, you wouldn’t be their yes-man. You’ll give them the hard truths, even if it results in conflict.
Because if you don’t, they’ll be in a constant cycle of self-sabotage, often not knowing that they’re their own enemy against their own success.
When they finally learn to accept their criticism, the next thing you need to do in order to bring out the best in them is to encourage them to step out of their comfort zone.
7) Encourage them to step out of their comfort zone
It’s in our very nature to fear change. This is especially true if you’re an anxious person.
Some of us even keep watching the same series and movies because we find comfort in knowing what will happen next.
This is because as people, we like comfort and security.
And this can be applied in all aspects of our life, from family, friendships, to romantic relationships.
However, we’ll never become our best selves if we never step out of our comfort zone.
Which is why it’s so important for you to encourage people to do that to bring out the best in them.
Encourage them to try new things. Explore new hobbies. Adapt healthy habits.
Trying new things is the only way they’ll find things they’re good at and, consequently, put them on a path to success.
8) Empathize with them
It can be easy to feel like no one understands us.
Human emotions are just so complex and often can be difficult to understand, especially if you’ve never felt some of these emotions before.
This is why it’s so special to find people who just get us.
So be that person for other people. Lend an ear to their struggles. Listen without judgment.
Speaking from experience, it becomes so much easier to be your best self when you have someone who understands your struggles and will be there for you when you experience setbacks.
9) Be there for them
Everyone needs a support system, which is not only composed of your significant other. It’s composed of friends and family, too.
If you’ve been in a wedding, or watched a wedding scene on TV, you probably know these lines:
‘…to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness or in health, to love and to cherish till death do us part.’
But having someone to have and to hold, for better or for worse, is not only important in marriages. It’s important in our relationships outside of romance, too.
So if you want to bring out the best in someone, be there for them—in successes and failures, in joy and in sadness.
Be a good friend for others. Knowing they’ve got something to fall back on when they make mistakes will encourage them to take risks and, ultimately, be their best selves.
