The not-so-secret formula for #Confidence
The pursuit of confidence drives action, debate, ambition and thousands of books, articles and research on the subject. Confidence can be perceived, faked and sometimes misunderstood.
Recently I was invited to speak at a #PowerOn event organized by Bridgit Richards to explore confidence and resilience with the participants. In preparation for the session, I reflected and conducted some research on what drives confidence and of course as you’ll know the resources on this topic are endless.
For those who know me, will know I like to keep things simple. As a coach, so often my clients will explore their confidence, whether in their own abilities, a project, a relationship or a goal and through coaching we work to find clarity and a way forward.
What I’ve wanted is a framework, something to support my clients that is easy to use and applicable in every situation, and of course, something simple.
So here it is.. my formula for confidence.
KNOWLEDGE + ENVIRONMENT – BARRIERS = CONFIDENCE
Presenting this formula to the audience last month generated a good discussion, and my ask of you reading this, is to test it. Find something to focus on whether in your personal or professional life, whether you are super confident or not and give this a go. Use the Why, When, What, How, Who questions for each element, and tell me what you think.
Each element is neither positive or negative. For example, an entrepreneur looking to raise investment may be highly knowledgeable in their product or service but have never raised investment. Perhaps their environment needs to change in order to network and learn from others. The barriers could be their own mindset, beliefs or past experiences.?Recognizing each element and its impact leads to clarity and the confidence soon follows.
Have I over-simplified this? What elements could be missing? Does “fake it til you make it” lead to real confidence? Also, for my fellow coaches out there, I feel like this could be a great framework for coaching conversations and I’d welcome your views.
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The test cases so far have been:
With each aspect, we dig a little deeper and the aim is to bring awareness and clarity, leading to an action.. however big or small.
For Entrepreneurs who value high performance and are keen to engage in a coaching relationship to support their journey, give me a shout.
Formula for Resilience is still a work in progress because currently I keep coming back to Adversity + Mindset = Resilience... but it's gotta be more than that, right?
Happy Friday Folks, I’m looking forward to your views!
Penny Layton, PCC Rosie Ranganathan, PCC Antoinette Oglethorpe Marianne Page Ryan Lakhan-Bunbury (PCC) Chris Lovett
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Product Owner Mortgages Santander | Co-Founder RAUR gymwear rauruk.com | Sikh Games Regional Lead, Buckinghamshire
1 年Hi Sharon, thanks for the article. It's good to have a formula to help structure our thoughts. My gut feel took me to self belief so I would look for that in an equation...can you be truly confident without self belief? All the best
Interesting! Super helpful to start drilling down into confidence as it means different things to each of us. Being able to articulate the components of confidence is a great starting point. Clients will often say "I want to be more confident" but what does that actually mean to them? I always explain state management - confidence is a state that we cannot maintain 100% of the time but its working out what are the things you can do to increase your confidence and what (or who!) will derail it. The environment is particularly interesting eg is it hierarchy, a lack of diversity that impacts confidence levels.
Motivational Speaker-Operational Excellence & Peak Performance | Supporting business owners to develop Sticky Systems that will deliver the consistent operation that inspires trust and loyalty | Best-selling Author
1 年It's an interesting formula and, as you say Sharon, the tough part can be removing those barriers particualrly if it's something ingrained in your mindset. But it's a great first step to recognise what they are and try to drill down using Kipling's serving men, who what why etc to try to understand and unblock.
PCC Executive & Leadership Coach | Founder of Layton Potential
1 年I think this is a great starting point to spark the thought process around where the issues for a particular issue may be. I can already think of all the different branches of thought this could produce. You know me, I love a simple approach! I wonder where you would feel experience sits within this? Could it lie in knowledge or environment or both? Possibly all 3!
Award-Winning Mentor and Coach | Trainer | Speaker | Author | Leadership Development | Mentoring | Career Management | Coaching and Training Programmes
1 年Thank you Sharon Rai. This is really though-provoking. I think your formula is an excellent approach to simplifying a complex concept like confidence. The 3 elements are all really strong and I can see how helping clients reflect on them would really help them get to the point of taking action which I think may be a missing element. People often think you need confidence to take action but I think the reverse is also true, you need to take action to build confidence. Taking actionable steps to improve your knowledge, shape your environment, and overcome your barriers can significantly boost your confidence. Taking small steps, experimenting with new behaviours, making mistakes, and learning from them are all part of this.