If a leader lacks confidence, they will have difficulty leading others. You can be unsure of specific skills, tasks, and more. That’s a given, as you’re always going to stretch yourself.
However, if a leader lacks confidence, this deficiency can be a leadership killer.
But, don’t fret. There are ways you can build your confidence. In fact, you may be doing some of these things without realizing what you’re doing.
Photo by Thomas Mowe on Unsplash
4 Little Things You Can Do To Build Confidence
You may think you need to take significant action to build confidence. You don’t. You only have to start with small things. These small things lead to enormous confidence.
1. Accomplish something unimportant but meaningful:
I don’t consider myself a handyman, yet the more I do little handyman-type projects around the home, the more confidence I build that I won’t destroy the house when a big project comes my way. Before writing this, I took out the old curtain rod brackets and replaced them with new Kwik-Hang curtain brackets (they were featured on Shark Tank). These brackets took me less than 5 minutes to install, but I felt great about my skills in replacing and repairing something in the house. Thanksgiving weekend, our kitchen faucet stopped working. A quick trip to Lowes and I had the new faucet. Replacing the kitchen faucet was a bit more complicated than the curtain rods, but this task was still unimportant in the grand scheme of things, yet there was something meaningful behind it. We could use our kitchen faucet again.
Each time you do something small that you are unsure of, you build a new level of confidence. Your new experience tells you that you can do what you haven’t done before.
Your confidence builds. You feel better about yourself. And those around you recognize that you’re pushing yourself, trying new things, and finding the confidence you lacked.
2. Set and accomplish goals:
Want to know if you can do something? Set a goal and go for it. The goal doesn’t have to be a BHAG (big, hairy audacious goal). It can be something simple.
But, start writing down your goals. Start accomplishing your goals.
You’ll not only see your goal list slim down (and then increase as you add more to the list), you’ll realize you really can accomplish what you’ve set out to do.
3. Repeat personal affirmations:
Affirmations are positive statements about yourself or the person you’re becoming. You are to repeat these statements to yourself daily or multiple times a day.
Each time you repeat the affirmation, you cement a new way of thinking into your mind.
A couple of affirmations that are hanging on my wall are:
- I am grateful to be a leader
- I live for those I love and I love what I do
- I am growing daily and learning new ways to think
- I find my primary worth in what God says, not man
These affirmations were from a sheet I downloaded from Steve Gutzler. They help focus my mind on what’s important. They also remind me where my strength comes from, why I do what I do, and more. These are all confidence builders.
You can build your own, find affirmations online, or download my list of positive affirmations below.
4. Stop playing the comparison game:
The comparison game is dangerous. You’re not only looking to others for affirmation; you’re giving yourself negative affirmations.
By comparing yourself to others, you look for what is wrong with yourself. You seek out the negative rather than the positive.
It’s time to quit the comparison game. You don’t have to play anymore. You can choose to stop.
Instead of playing the comparison game, look at others to see what you can become more like. Use what you see as a motivator to become better.
Start to act a little more like the person you admire. Watch yourself grow. Your confidence will come as well.
