Building Confidence
Confidence has become a hot-button issue for women. We all want more of it, and yet we can’t seem to shake the feelings of imposture syndrome that creep up at the most inopportune times.
But what if doing it scared was the reality for most people? What if, instead of feeling confident, which seems like a far-off imaginary reality that we could never achieve, we could learn to act confident in the midst of fear?
You see, most of the time, we’re all a little scared, nervous, or simply battling an internal voice that’s telling us we’re not good enough. This is fear-based insecurity and it’s rooted in a false narrative.
We tell ourselves things like, I’m not good enough, successful enough, qualified enough, pretty enough, rich enough, confident enough… you fill in the blank.
We ALL battle these internal lies, some of us more than others. The good news? Once you recognize that these insecurities are not based on reality, you can start to combat the lies swirling about your brain… here’s how:
Every time these insecurities creep up, respond to them by speaking truth over yourself. Even if you don’t believe it, you need to say it. Feelings follow facts, not the other way around. So even if you don’t feel the truth you’re telling yourself, speaking the truth over and over actually has power because you’ll slowly start to believe the truth over the lie.
So maybe there is something to doing it scared. Doing it scared means you are choosing to act according to the truth vs. the lie. But before you start to unpack the truth about your insecurities, you need to ask yourself some specific questions when facing your fear.
Here are some questions to consider:
What lies are you believing about yourself?
In what way do you need to transform your thinking?
In what area do you lack the most confidence? Why?
If your worst fear became a reality, what would be the result?
What truth will you choose to believe today?
When you can honestly answer these questions, you’ll start to discover what lies you are currently believing, how they are holding you back, and what the truth is behind them. This is when your confidence starts to build and that stuff you’re afraid of now will start to feel easy.
The truth is, confidence doesn’t just show up one day like an out-of-town visitor pulling the pop-in. In rare cases, you may feel confident because of an unexpected twist of events, but in reality, most of us are doing it scared.
And that’s okay because doing it scared requires bravery. It takes courage to do the thing you know is right, take a leap of faith into the unknown, or voice an unpopular opinion simply because your voice needs to be heard.
Even though most of us don’t particularly enjoy fear or walking through uncomfortable situations, those courageous steps develop inner strength, which builds confidence over time. The more you bravely walk through fear, the more confident you will become.
That doesn't mean someday you’re going to wake up and all that fear and insecurity will be gone, it just means you’ve learned that doing the brave thing is always worth it in the end. It’s then that you’ll realize that walking through fear, laying down your insecurities, and doing it scared is the stuff that confidence is made of.
Have you started to unpack your fear-based insecurities, but you’re still struggling to discover the truth of who you are? We have a mentorship sprint designed to help you do just that! Click here to learn more.