Self Improvement Through Technology

How to build up a confidence doing something?

The answer is within yourself. Just try to remember what was the last major task that you have done CONFIDENTLY. If you can not dig out a major task, then let us be very lame…just pick anything that you have done successfully lately and you confident doing it. Let say driving to work place?

So every day you go to work, and you drive to work. Do you ever feel not confident doing it…after all you have been doing the same thing for years. I bet you dont even think about it. You just get in the car and start the engine and drove off.

Then just remember when you doing it the first time. Do you have the same confident level as now? You might still confident to make it…but there always doubt about do you really know the way to the place. How is the traffic at that particular time. Is there any gas station on the way..in case you ran out of gas. There were a lot of questions.

So the first hint to be confident to do anything is to answer any doubt questions related to the task on hand. Example, if you are giving your first public speech, you will ask will the audience laugh to this joke that I want to put in. Or will the audience understand me. Will them be bored to death. So just find the answer to these questions. Get few people to hear your rehearsal - find those that can be trusted to give you constructive criticism. They will tell you whether the jokes work, the speech can be understood or it is just plain boring.

You dont need to answer all the questions arise. But just answer the “important” ones..those that always lingering around in your head. The goal is to clear your mind from these questions so that you can focus on the task.

Rehearsal is a good way to build confidence because it answers questions and doubt that people might have. So that is why people do rehearsals. Rehearsal for ceremonies, events, etc.

Another step that can help is to define what is the goal - clearly. When you go to your office on the first day your goal was to make it on time. Not to get there on the shortest time. Or getting there in the shortest distance. Each goal need different approach and generate different questions.

Let say you are giving first public speech. What is your goal? To give speech that people can understand. Or you want to give speech that does not bored the audience. Or you want to dazzle them and get standing ovation at the end. Your goal determine what are the questions to be answered.

Another well known method to build confidence is to practice. To me this is just the same as the rehearsal. Practice basically help you to answer the related questions. Practice also act as a feedback to your own mind on how prepared you are. Practice come in different forms: rehearsal, simulation, qualification round, dummy event etc…

OK this just remind me, the practice of answering related questions in order to build confidence is quite well known in business world - this questions and answers is professionally referred to as “Business Plan”. Business plan is there to make the starting business owner and also others such as bank representative and investors confidence to do their part.

The conclusion to me is in order to build your confidence try to answer all the related questions as best as you can.