8 Ways To Raise Your Standards As a Woman

There are many ways to raise your standards as a woman.

But how do you know what the right standard is for you?

Well, if you don’t, worry not.

This article will help guide and teach you how to set your own standards and work towards raising them so that you can live up to your potential and be the best version of yourself.

Eliminate What’s Holding You Back

If there’s anything holding you back from reaching your goals, it needs to go out of your life immediately.

These things could be toxic people or habits that keep dragging down how far you can go in life and how much success you’ll be able to achieve on this path towards self-improvement.

In order to get rid of these negative things, it’s important to have an idea of what they are.

Start by writing down your goals and the higher standards you want to achieve.

Then, take a good look at your life goals and ask yourself how these negative things are holding you back from reaching them.

From there, make a plan on how to get rid of them and how it will benefit you in the long run.

For example, starting to learn French might be intimidating at first, even though it’s something you’ve always wanted to do. But starting will definitely help you navigate better when visiting Paris in the future.

Now, think about how visiting Paris might change your life. By simply speaking the language, you may want to stick around for a little longer, find a job, work towards a career, and change your life for the better.

So, learning French can definitely be something that has the potential to open doors for you and change your life.

One thing that can be helpful here is journaling about how these negative influences make you feel and how they are stopping you from being happy or successful at what you want to achieve.

This also helps figure out how much time they take up, which may help motivate you to get rid of them sooner.

For example, by dedicating only one hour a day to learning French instead of scrolling through Instagram, you will likely become fluent in less than a year. A year would pass by anyway, so it’s better to do something than nothing.

To give you an idea of where to start, here are the few things that are most often responsible for holding many of us back, and how to start fixing them:

Procrastination

If you always put off doing something until tomorrow, chances are it will never get done.

The same goes for how we treat our self-improvement goals as well!

To overcome this problem and stop procrastinating, start by making a list of all the things that need to be completed today and how much time they’ll take to do.

From there, start by completing the easiest tasks that take the least amount of time and work your way up.

This will help get the ball rolling and make you feel more productive as you’ll be crossing things off your list.

If you’re having trouble getting started, it would help to dig deeper and try to figure out why you are procrastinating from completing a certain task.

Is there a task that’s causing you anxiety? Where does this come from? Do you feel like you are not fit for the task? Or do you simply underestimate how much time it will take?

By digging into these questions, you can determine what is holding you back and what it would take to fix the problem.

Perfectionism

Many of us are perfectionists when it comes to our goals.

We want everything to be just perfect before we take any action, but this isn’t always possible and can actually lead to a lot of paralysis by analysis.

In order to overcome this obstacle, start by simply accepting that you will make mistakes, and that’s okay!

If you’re worried about how others will perceive you when they see these mistakes, tell yourself that it’s okay to make them because this is what helped you achieve the task, and it is also what will help you improve on it in the future.

Additionally, it’s important to remember that nobody is perfect, and everyone makes mistakes.

It can be hard to accept this when you’re a perfectionist, but it’s a fundamental truth that will help set you free.

The best first step to beating perfectionism is to post that article you’ve been keeping in your drafts even if you think it’s not perfect, send that e-mail even if it contains a minor spelling mistake, or upload that graphic that explains something you are skilled at on your social media page.

Embarrassment

We’ve all been embarrassed at some point in our lives, and this emotion can be a very powerful deterrent when it comes to self-improvement goals.

For example, if you want to learn French but are too embarrassed to take lessons, how will you ever get better?

The answer is you won’t.

To overcome this feeling, start by acknowledging that embarrassment is a natural emotion and it’s something that we all feel from time to time, especially when taking up a new hobby, trying to improve on a new skill or even starting a new job.

From there, try to find somebody who can relate to how you’re feeling and talk about it with them.

If you need someone outside of your circle, this could be a friend, family member, or even a professional therapist.

The important thing is that they understand how it feels when people look at them as if they’re not good enough because of how embarrassed they are about themselves.

Talking to somebody like this will help decrease how often you’ll experience embarrassment around others and make it easier for you to take the necessary steps in order to improve.

Voicing your concerns or insecurities will not only help you, but it might even help the person you are talking to, making this a very productive and beneficial experience that will push you a step closer to achieving your goals.

Insecurity

Insecurity is another emotion that can hold us back from reaching our goals and setting higher standards for ourselves.

When we are insecure about something, we feel undeserving of having a higher expectation or setting a higher standard.

For example, if you want to start your own business but are afraid of what people will think of you, how successful you’ll be, or how much money you’ll make, this insecurity will prevent you from taking any action.

To overcome this feeling, try to remind yourself that many successful people out there started their businesses with little or no skill at all.

It’s important to be realistic and not expect to reach the same level of success as someone who’s been in the industry for much longer.

However, working hard and especially keeping an authentic attitude will help attract people who can relate to the message you are trying to convey with your business as well as those who are willing to support your endeavors.

Comparing Yourself to Others

We all do it; we can’t help but compare ourselves to others.

It’s a natural way for us to measure how well we’re doing in life and whether or not our goals are realistic.

However, when we constantly compare ourselves to others, we will always come out short because everybody has had unique struggles, obstacles, and opportunities that helped them get to the point where they are now.

To overcome this feeling, try to remind yourself how everything we do is unique and that you probably have a unique set of skills, unique surroundings, and unique obstacles on your path.

Which is why focusing on your situation rather than someone else’s will ultimately be more productive for you and help you achieve your personal goals.

Improve the Things You Don’t Like

The best way to set higher standards for yourself is by improving what you don’t like about yourself.

This could be how you look, how much money you make, how skilled you are in a particular field, etc., and the list goes on.

But in order to improve these things, we need first identify what they are so that once we have a clear understanding of them, it’ll become easier for us to take action towards taking control over our lives.

Therefore, to give you a little boost of motivation, here is a short list of where to start:

Get in Shape

It’s no secret that exercise is vital for our health and well-being.

If you’re looking to set higher standards for yourself, then getting in shape should be at the top of your list because how we look plays a significant role in how we perceive ourselves and how others perceive us as people.

In fact, studies have shown that people associate being overweight with being lazy, unintelligent, and unhealthy.

While being in shape is not the only thing that contributes to how people perceive us, it’s definitely an excellent place to start if you’re looking to make a positive change.

Set a weight goal or a body goal (for example toning your legs or arms) and work towards it.

For one, it will make you feel better and more accomplished when you start noticing results from something you’re working towards.

And you are likely to become happier and more satisfied with the way you look, too.

Learn How to do Your Makeup Better

If you are just doing makeup for the sake of it, there could be a high chance that you are not taking pleasure in spending time on your makeup or even how your makeup looks.

Therefore, to make this a more exciting process that will lead to a more satisfying outcome, spend some time learning how to do your makeup better, what are some new products that could work for you, ask for tips from professional makeup artists, and experiment with what works for you best.

While doing this, you won’t only pick up a new skill, but you will likely be more satisfied with the final results and how your makeup looks.

Use Flattering Products/Shades

Not every makeup product looks good for everyone, and no matter how much we like a beautiful coral blush, some of us simply can’t pull it off even if our lives depended on it.

This is why it’s a good idea to figure out your flattering shades by looking at your undertone and skin color instead of just following trends that don’t necessarily look good on you.

There are many helpful videos on color theory and how to figure out your undertone and flattering shades. However, if you are still having a hard time figuring this out, you can consult with a professional makeup artist who will help you out.

Additionally, when it comes to shades, you have to pay attention to the tiniest detail and even consider wearing nail polish shades that look good on you.

For example, I like yellow nail polish in summer, but it makes me look ghostly, and it simply doesn’t work well with my undertone, which is why I stay away from it no matter how pretty the shade looks inside the bottle.

Be Aware of Your Flaws and Learn How to Accentuate the Features You Like the Most

Learning how to do makeup according to your particular needs will definitely give you a confidence boost you never knew was possible.

Makeup can not only hide blemishes and discoloration but can entirely shape your face and accentuate the most flattering features about you.

On the other hand, when done wrong, makeup can definitely accentuate our flaws, which is something we have to be aware of.

For example, if you have thin lips, wearing a dark, bold lipstick won’t look the greatest, but a brighter shade with a matching lip liner can make your lips look fuller.

This is why it’s a good idea to learn how to accentuate the features you like about yourself while also working in harmony with those that aren’t necessarily your favorite.

Wear Flattering Clothing Designs and Colors

While clothing won’t have the same impact as to how your face looks, it can definitely make a huge difference in how you feel once you start wearing more flattering designs and colors.

The trick here is to figure out what are the best cuts and materials that work well for your body type that will accentuate the things you like about yourself while cleverly concealing the parts that aren’t necessarily your favorite.

Learning color theory is also a crucial detail that has definitely changed the way I shop for clothes. I highly recommend everyone invest a little bit of time in learning it because it will definitely help you make better clothing choices while on your next shopping trip spree.

Take Great Care of Your Skin, Hair, and Nails

While makeup, clothing design, and color are definitely important details when it comes to how we feel about ourselves, the condition of our skin, hair, and nails is just as necessary.

The good news here is that this can be improved by simply paying a little more attention to how you take care of yourself in general.

For example: if your hair is dry, brittle, and always gets tangled, you might want to consider how often you are washing your hair, how you style it after washes, and what type of products (if any) are you using.

Additionally, learning how to properly take care of your skin can definitely be a life changer because the correct routine will improve how you look and feel.

It’s no secret that having acne has such a massive impact on people dealing with it and has prevented many from setting higher standards for themselves because it forces people to hide instead of putting themselves out there in the world.

Admitting that you have a concern like this is definitely not the most pleasant thing ever, but addressing it on time and taking care of it with professional help can definitely improve the quality of your life and the standards you set for yourself.

Lastly, taking care of yourself also includes taking great care of our nails because they are an extension of ourselves and can say a lot about how we’re feeling on the inside.

A great way to take care of your nails is by using cuticle oil every day and wearing clean nail polish to strengthen and nourish your nails.

Dress For The Occasion

No matter how you look and how good you feel in a certain outfit, there will be situations where you will appear to be out of place if you are not dressed for the occasion.

That’s why it’s important always to take the time to analyze how appropriate your outfit is for a particular occasion.

For example, having a night out in a particular setting calls for something entirely different from what you would wear when meeting your friends for lunch.

So always pay attention to the dress code written on the invite, or simply ask if you are unsure so that you can avoid feeling uncomfortable and out of place during the event.

Additionally, if you are unsure what to wear and how to combine your clothing pieces, there are many helpful fashion tips that you can pick up from a 5-minute YouTube video.

Lastly, don’t underestimate how much better you will feel while looking gorgeous and appropriate wherever you turn up.

Know What You Want and Pursue it

One of the best ways to raise your standards as a woman is by knowing exactly what you want and pursuing it with all of your heart.

Setting goals for yourself is definitely one way to do this, but making sure that those goals are realistic and achievable is another story.

If you’re someone who has trouble sticking to their goals or completing specific tasks, I recommend getting yourself a planner that will help you keep track of how much time you have to dedicate to each goal.

This is how I got myself into the habit of working out every day and how I manage my writing projects daily.

And while this might not seem like an important detail at first glance, it’s definitely something that can help you raise your standards because it proves to yourself that you are capable of completing challenging tasks when you put your mind to it.

Don’t be Afraid to Speak Up

One of the things that can prevent women from setting higher standards is the fear of being judged or not taken seriously.

While it’s definitely something that we all need to deal with at some point in our lives, don’t let it stop you from voicing your opinion when you have something important to say.

Remember: other people are entitled to their own opinion, but that doesn’t mean you have to agree with them or take their words to heart.

Speaking up for yourself and your beliefs is a sign of strength and courage, something that we should all aspire to be more like every day.

One last thing.

Being assertive and not afraid to voice your opinion doesn’t give you the excuse to be loud or rude and demand something that you feel entitled to.

There is a big difference between being confident and demanding, so make sure that you are always respectful when communicating with other people, especially when you want to be heard and understood.

Learn How to Cook a Few Dishes Well

Cooking is one of those skills that will make you feel more confident and proud.

And while it’s not something that you need to be great at in order to raise your standards, knowing how to prepare a few dishes really well can definitely help you appreciate yourself even more.

Another great thing you should consider is coming up with a few signature dishes and treating your family, friends, and even your date by preparing something that’s authentic to you.

My favorite signature dish is salmon that I prepare in a very particular way, and everyone who’s ever tried it has loved it so much and always asks for the recipe!

I came up with this while learning how to cook salmon through YouTube videos, but I have tweaked a few things here and there to make it more authentic.

Therefore, you don’t have to invent a dish from scratch if you don’t want to. You can find something you already like and add your personal flavor to it.

Embrace Your Femininity and Own it Proudly

One of the best things you can do to raise your standards as a woman is to embrace your femininity and own it proudly.

This doesn’t mean that you have to be super girly or dress up in skirts and high heels all the time (unless you want to); but it does mean that you should invest some time into learning appropriate etiquette and manners, as this is something that will definitely make you look and feel more confident and improve how others perceive you.

And while this might not be something that is at the forefront of your mind when it comes to raising standards, it’s definitely worth mentioning as wearing makeup or dressing up are not the only ways to embrace femininity.

Being polite and respectful will take you a long way, and it’s something that will definitely help you out in the long run.