This is a simple task that will help you get into a self-positive mindset, which is essential to maintaining confidence. Yes, you have areas that need improving, everybody does, but often, a lack of confidence comes from a lack of self-esteem. Listing the positives in your life can help you get past the minor negatives. Here are some things you could include: Talents or skills: This doesn't have to be competitive. It only means that you see yourself as talented or skillful in some area, like athletics, art, business, or creativity. Personality traits: Note anything about your personality that you take pride in. For example, you might see yourself as hard working, caring, or imaginative. Accomplishments: These are things you've achieved that you're proud of. Maybe you performed in a concert, spoke in front of an audience, baked a birthday cake, or ran in a race. Frequently, this develops when you don't feel supported or listened to by people in your life. This often begins in early childhood and stems from family interactions. Maybe your parents were overly critical, harsh or punishing. This can prevent the development of self-confidence and create worried, hesitant, and fearful adults who lack a sense of self. On the other hand, parents who overprotect their children, also do them a disservice by not allowing them to try, fail, try again, and finally succeed. The adult version is afraid to try anything new for fear of failure. For example, if your parents always criticized your efforts in school, you may grow up believing you aren't smart or that you can't possibly succeed in life. You may believe that others think you aren't smart or hardworking. Or, if your parents never let you go anywhere by yourself as a child, for fear you would get lost or kidnapped, you may have a difficult time as an adult going to unfamiliar places. In truth, failure or getting lost is what helps us learn. Do you want to build confidence in speaking to people? In public speaking? Write down the areas in which you want to build self-confidence. This can make your plan to gain confidence clearer. For example, you may note that you want to speak to the class during a group project. Or, write down that you'd like to be more confident when playing a group sport or doing an activity. Once you know what area you'd like to gain confidence in, decide specifically how you'll increase your self-confidence. You may want to write down the steps of your action plan. Start small and gradually work your way up to more challenging situations or interactions. For example, write that you want to start a conversation with at least one person today. Or, ask one question in a class or group setting. Then practice by talking with more people or asking more questions. Practicing is a vital part of gaining confidence. You may plan on interviewing for three new jobs in the next year or applying to two new schools. Or, your action plan may be smaller. Maybe your goal is to go out with friends once a week or take a class that you're interested in. Make sure your goals are broken down into detailed steps. This way, you'll be able to track your progress. You'll also feel more confident with these accomplishments. Make sure the goals are manageable and achievable. For example, a measurable goal with several steps might be something like this, "Steps: train 6 months, then run a half-marathon, train another 3 months. Goal: run a full-marathon." Make sure to write down and schedule your goals. This will increase your chances of achieving them. If you're struggling, revise the goal or consider what you've learned before moving on.
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One-sentence summary -- List your strengths. Understand your lack of self-confidence. Write down what kind of confidence you want to gain. Make a simple action plan. Set small and measurable goals.

Defensiveness not only leads to out of control emotions, it also makes people see you as too emotional. You may feel defensive if you feel stressed, frustrated, or personally attacked. However, it's important to listen to the opinions of others, especially if they're given constructively, without taking them personally. You can cope with defensiveness by reducing the threat in the situation and remaining curious about the thoughts of others. Here are signs of defensiveness: Refusing to listen to negative feedback Making excuses for failures Passing blame Crossing your arms to shut people out Smiling and nodding to get the person to stop talking Listing reasons why you're right without talking to others Ignoring feedback from others Using sarcasm or criticism of others to deflect from criticism about yourself Your triggers are the activities, people, places, things, or events that consistently bring out particular emotions in you. Once you know your triggers, you can plan for them and mentally prepare yourself. For instance, let's say your sister makes you angry every time you see her. Before the next family gathering, you might engage in relaxing self care before you go, then plan how you will take breaks from your sister throughout the day. You might make plans with another relative to go do something, or you might plan to leave and pick up a dish. Limit how much time you spend with her, and plan a way to leave early, if necessary. If you can tell that someone is bothering you just to egg you on, take a deep breath and stay calm. Speak calmly and refuse to let them get to you. When you maintain your cool, the person egging you on will become frustrated and eventually stop. When you feel ready to address them, first calmly tell them what you're feeling. Say something like, "I get frustrated when I feel like you're just trying to get a rise out of me." Then, address the issue at hand and ask them for their thoughts on it, then listen and respond to what they're saying. For example, you could say, "Let's actually talk about the issue here, which is trying to finish this project on time. What ideas do you have?" If you feel angry, you might clench your jaws and tense up. Taking a few deep breaths and relaxing your muscles is an easy and effective way to dial down strong feelings, which can stop you from doing something you might regret later. If you feel yourself reacting to strong emotions in a way that's typical for you, stop yourself. Take a moment and think about what would happen if you tried the opposite of your usual reaction. How would the outcome change? If it would become positive or productive, try that new method instead of your old one. For example, you might get bothered when your spouse regularly doesn't do the dishes. Instead of starting an argument, challenge yourself to do the dishes yourself, then politely ask your spouse if they could help. If this sounds difficult, start is by changing one small thing at a time. Instead of yelling at your spouse, tell them how you feel in a more neutral voice. If this is still too hard, walk away and take a 5 minute break. Eventually, you can work your way towards changing your reaction for good. Sometimes the best reaction is walking away and avoiding your triggers altogether. If a situation can be reworked relatively easily and without hurting others, do what you can to remove yourself from it and your negative feelings. For example, if you're on a committee at work that includes people who are unfocused, you might get upset when attending the meetings. One strategy for dealing with this frustration is to ask to be re-assigned to a different committee.
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One-sentence summary -- Learn to recognize defensiveness in both yourself and others. Take precautions against your emotional triggers. Do nothing if someone is trying to frustrate you. Relax if you feel angry or upset. Try doing the opposite of what you would normally do. Remove yourself from a situation that generates negative feelings.

You can use plain hand soap to wash the bra because this will effectively remove the oils from the adhesive. However, if you have a special cleanser for your bra, then you can use that to clean it instead. Check to see if the bra manufacturer makes a detergent for the bra. If so, you can use this to cleanse your bra after each use.
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One-sentence summary --
Mix a few drops of hand soap or bra cleanser with warm soapy water.