It’s nice to feel a sense of confidence when it comes to pursuing our endeavors, but is it required? I don’t believe so. It’s not a prerequisite for success, and it’s not nearly as crucial as we think.  

I remember one night preparing for a presentation I was scheduled to deliver the next morning. Instead of spending time outlining my talk, I gave attention to how I was feeling about delivering it. I didn’t feel confident. And because of that I did a really good job of convincing myself that it would be a disaster. Anxiety ensued, one thought led to the next and soon I was completely paralyzed. My lack of confidence clearly got in the way of my preparation. So what did I do?; I dropped my need to feel confident. Once I did that, the words came. I was able to prepare a talk to the best of my ability and I was done.  

The pursuit of confidence leads to anxiety and self doubt. And when you’re in a state of self doubt it’s really hard to create. Some say it’s the killer of creativity. Drop the pursuit, and there’s no uneasiness. Your creative mechanism can fire on all cylinders. 

There are other qualities of success that are more important, like preparation, authenticity, and resilience. Get busy building these and watch what happens. 

Funny thing is, I did end up feeling confident that day. But it came AFTER my presentation. 

That’s because confidence is a byproduct of genuine effort, not a prerequisite.  

Don’t CHASE confidence. Instead, focus on preparation and learning how to be yourself. When you do this you ATTRACT confidence. 

Keep on keeping on, 

Coach