Your Confidence, Your Competence

The hot topic this week is confidence. Isn’t it always a hot topic? Even the most confident people second-guess themselves when their ego takes a hit. Confidence is our judgment and perception of ourselves—essentially, our sense of how well we will fare in this world doing what we do.

Interestingly, many of us link confidence firmly to competence. It’s common to feel a lack of confidence when we believe we “don’t know enough.” Yet, many wish to feel confident even in these situations, implying that it’s possible to be confident without being fully competent.

This forces us to separate confidence from competence; otherwise, we are setting ourselves up for impossible expectations. Confidence should not be dependent on our knowledge or capabilities.

One client made a surprising connection between confidence and the flow state when adopting a “craftsman” mindset. A craftsman is acutely aware of their own flaws, but rather than using this awareness for self-judgment and shaming—thus diminishing confidence—they use it as a catalyst for further discovery with curiosity.

In the craftsman’s world, perhaps there is no need for something called “confidence.” Instead, there is just presence, curiosity, and a view of the learning journey as an adventure.

So, how can we achieve confidence? Maybe it’s not about confidence at all.

Question For You

What do you resonate with in this article about confidence and competence?

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Every Friday, I share ONE idea and its manifestations and 1 question for you to ponder. Other ingredients you can expect will be book extracts, quotes, metaphors, tools, resources, and mini-exercises to keep growing your self-awareness.