Confidence Is Not The Absence of Fear

This weekend I went to get my hair cut and I said to the hairdresser, "I just want it shorter and lighter, just do what you want"

He looked a bit taken aback and went through various options and I said, "I don’t care, just do whatever you think is best"

I took off my glasses because they were in the way - everything’s a blur without them - and didn’t put them back on until he was done.

I think for the first time in my life, I really didn’t care. I said to him, "what’s the worst that can happen, it will grow back!"

I don’t know if that’s maturity - not expecting the poor hairstylist to suddenly transform you into a goddess - or because I’m less vain that I used to be. Not sure.

But it put me in mind of a quotation that I love:

"Confidence is not the absence of fear, it’s the knowledge that you’ll be okay despite your fear."

If we use the hair analogy it’s if you try something and it doesn’t work, well, it will grow back or as my hairdresser said, ‘you can wear a hat for 6 months’. No big deal.

When it comes to confidence in our careers, fear can hold us back:

• Fear of going for a bigger role because you don’t think you’re 100% qualified;

• Fear of speaking up in meetings because you think you might get something wrong;

• Fear of disagreeing with the crowd and being ostracised;

If any of these are you then think about:

• What’s the worst that can happen?

• What does it cost you to listen to that fear?

• What do you have inside of you to know you’ll be okay despite your fear?

Remember that book, ‘Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway’? Tell yourself that AND ‘I know I will be okay despite the fear’

Tracy