Confidence
“Fake it til you make it? Just don’t flake it til you make it.”
How do we derive confidence?
In the past few years, it’s seemed like the milestones to building confidence were obvious. Join a rocketship company. Get promoted every few years. Invest in a fast growing asset class. Make a certain amount of money. In the background, most people’s choices were validated by an ever-improving market… amateurs became professionals, professionals became experts, experts became really rich.
Many of us built confidence predicated on external factors. It turns out, the type of confidence that is staked on things like expanding titles, net worth, investment portfolios and LinkedIn accolades) is extremely insecure and vulnerable1.
The alternative is Self-confidence. People who lack self-confidence rely on other people’s approval, or external validation to affirm that they’re doing well.
Self-generated confidence is particularly important in moments like this, because when sh*t is hitting the fan, and all the external hallmarks we’ve come to rely on to boost our confidence are going haywire.. all we’ve got is the confidence we make for ourselves.
I know what you’re thinking. “Great, so just BE more confident? On the inside?” “That is supremely unhelpful advice.” You’re not wrong. But, I’ve done some of the exploration/research for you, and I offer a few simple thoughts as a starting point:
Confidence is:
Ignited by the belief that it’s possible you’ll end up where you want to be
Built by repeatedly keeping promises to ourselves
Reinforced over time with ownership and accountability
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