Think of someone who you say is confident – your boss, a colleague or a celebrity, perhaps.
Chances are you’d describe them as poised, hopeful and positive. They know their strengths, and they know their weaknesses, too. Often people think of confidence as something that the lucky few are born with, and the rest are left wishing for. This simply is not true. Confidence is not a personality trait or a fixed attribute; it’s the outcome of the thoughts we think and the actions we take. Confidence is learnable.
It also isn’t based on our actual ability to succeed at a task but on our belief in our ability to succeed. It is the expectation of a positive outcome – regardless of whether this relates to our belief in our ability to speak in front of a large audience, to learn new technology, to lead a team, to handle confrontation, to change jobs and careers, or to start a business.
With consistent effort, and the courage to take a risk, we can gradually expand our confidence and, with it, our capacity to build more of it. Here’s how to do that in four key areas.