The Sunday Stoic Essay : Confidence versus Clarity.

Socrates remarked, "The more I learn, the less I realize I know." Socrates (470-399 BC) was a Greek philosopher credited as the founder of Western philosophy and whose writings were an inspiration for many of the early Stoics.

Throughout history, specific individuals have been identified by the rest as leaders. Leaders are tasked with understanding the current landscape, identifying opportunities, and leading a group of other individuals toward a better state of affairs. Often, a leader needs to be agile and dynamic. Working 365x24x7, the leader respond to changing conditions while fullfilling pre-defined goals. Some might say that a leader must sprint while juggling or build an airplane while flying it.

Facing such expectations, no leader can operate alone. Every leader has to seek counsel from others, especially those who possess domain or operational expertise that the leader does not possess. In doing so, a leader would come across individuals with diverse opinions, enthusiasm, and relevance to the leader's objectives. At this point, a leader must be able to differentiate two very distinct attributes- confidence and clarity- among the people that provide them with counsel. What is the difference between the two? And why does that matter?

Confidence?is the state of feeling sure about our limited perception of reality.

As with any other feeling, confidence is colored by our biases, opinions, and limited experiences. Many of us prematurely declare positive or negative confidence in a person, situation, or the future. Most advisors want to project confidence. Therefore, many advisors believe that hesitating or asking questions would not be taken positively. One way to avoid this situation is for the leader to ask follow-up questions. The leaders should ask how and why the advisor came to their conclusion about a situation. A well-informed advisor can answer those questions. An ill-informed advisor will either ask for more time or become defensive. History is replete with kings, generals, and politicians who had the wrong kind of confidence, often inculcated by advisors who wanted to be seen on the right side of the leader's plan, rather than express the right opinion to make it work. Their collective confidence was deflated the moment the reality failed to match their perception.

Clarity, on the other hand, is the complete understanding of reality.

Clarity is not an emotion but the fruit of a systematic analysis and study. Clarity is often inconvenient because achieving it requires rigorously testing our perceptions against available data, expert opinions, and careful deliberations. However, once attained, unlike confidence, clarity has a long shelf life. Advisors seeking clarity will ask the leader many questions. With each answer from the leader, the advisor will titrate their advice. An advisor with clarity is invested in knowing more about logistics, resourcing, and practicalities. Such an advisor values being valued for their competency. History is replete with many leaders who achieved clarity over the years, often by reading books and consulting many capable advisors. Once clarity was completed, such leaders had the right direction and delivered long-standing change.

Confidence can win us a battle, but only clarity can win us the war. As leaders, you will seek the counsel of many and lead many more. While doing so, as a leader, consider the following:?

• Clarity leads to confidence, not the other way around.
• Confidence can fluctuate, but for the long haul, clarity keeps everyone focused.?
• Always seek the person who has more clarity over the person who has more confidence, even if the person with clarity seems less assured.?The best decisions are made by consulting advisors who know more than the leader and are still humble enough to admit that they need to learn more.

Dear Reader,

Any views or opinions expressed in this short essay are my own and do not necessarily represent any people, institutions, or organizations I may or may not be associated with in a professional or personal capacity. In my personal time, I enjoy reading Stoic literature as a way of personal growth and self-reflection. While I am not an expert on Stoicism, these short essays are a way for me to engage with the philosophy and learn from it, just as the ancient Stoics did. If you have any suggestions for topics that intersect Stoicism and leadership, I welcome your thoughts via LinkedIn messaging.

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