Is Being Self-confident the same as Being Confident?

What’s the difference between being self-confident and being confident?

This is a question that I struggled with for a long time. On the face of it, they seem like they’re the same thing, right?

Well, after much thought, here’s what I think it comes down to…

Everyone is confident, but, not everyone is self-confident. And here’s why.

You are already confident.

Believe it or not, you’re a very confident person. There are many, many things you do every day, that showcase your supreme confidence.

You’re confident you can brush your teeth. You’re confident that you can read a newspaper, or a book.

The same with walking, or preparing a meal. Doing a job of work, or being confident you can use a vacuum cleaner, etc.

Because with confidence, you look back to your past experiences for evidence that you can do something well. Clearly, there was time that you couldn’t do these things very well. But, like everything, with practice at these particular tasks, you became confident.

In short, you are confident in something, when you have experience and external evidence that proves it to you. In other words, you can look back at several, successful occasions, when you were able to carry out that task, and you did a good job. therefore; good experiences=confidence.

Srini Pillay, the CEO of NeuroBusiness Group, puts it like this…

“Unfamiliar situations can cause a brain-jam if we do not approach them with a conscious sense of how to be. Building up structures that enhance trust, decrease stress and creating an emotional connection with people or a project can help the brain navigate its way to your goals.”

So, what is Self-Confidence?

Being Self-confidence is an internal feeling. It’s how you feel about your own abilities. How you grade your likelihood to do something correctly, or how successful at an activity, you think you’ll be.

To give you an example, let’s say that for 20 years you’ve worked as a developer in the design of ‘widgets‘. You’re confident that you know everything about the way that your ‘widgets’ work.

Then, your boss asks you to join her in a company meeting, so you can explain how the widgets work to everyone there. This is where being self-confidence is a huge advantage.

If you’re like I was, then the internal belief in yourself that are able to do this incredibly stressful thing, was completely missing.

So, being self-confident, is about how much belief you have in yourself, to do something that’s uncomfortable. And a lot of the stress surrounding the things you don’t feel confident doing, is because you don’t want to fail.

Being a failure is a whole other subject. And it’s not as bad as you think it is, I promise you 🙂

Obviously, like anything, once you’ve done it successfully a few times, it moves over to the confident column.

So why does this matter?

No one needs help to become confident. Confidence happens once you’ve reached a point where something new can be achieved, without causing stress or anxiety.

But, having self-confidence can be struggle. And that’s what I want to help with.

Improving your self-confidence, even a small amount, will get you closer to achieving your goals. It’ll propel you forward to help you create the life you want for yourself.

The more you build your self-confidence, the greater the chances you’ll become open to trying new things.

Are you ready to have new experiences and adventures? If you need a bit more convincing, have a read of my longer explanation of self-confidence.

If you’re ready now… then it’s time to get started!