HOW IMPORTANT IS CAREER CONFIDENCE?
Whether you’re a business owner, a senior manager, or just starting out in the first few years of your career – it’s important to understand that confidence is an essential element to a successful career AND to achieving business results.
Without a foundation of career confidence, you’ll find yourself constantly swimming upstream. And as time goes on, this extra effort will eventually begin to drain you. You will start to slip behind as others who are confidently striving ahead.
There is no denying that Confidence is directly related to how well you do your job and how well you can relate to the people working around you. People that are less confident not only are more hesitant to share & promote their abilities and skills, but also are often less willing to contribute to a team environment.
Also, it’s important to understand that like- attracts like. This means if your confidence is low, you may sub-consciously surround yourself with people who have similar confidence challenges. This (for the short term) will make you feel more at ease and comfortable in the work environment. However, in the long term, this will only add to your confidence challenges and inevitably hold you back.
THE STATS ON CAREER CONFIDENCE
According to research conducted by Red Dot Research, the impact lacking self-confidence has on our behavior is greater than we realize – highlighting that;
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32% of people are afraid of putting their own ideas forward
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29% of people feel lacking self-confidence in client meetings
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27% of people feel low self-confidence when working with a superior.
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One in five (20%) consider themselves as ‘a push-over’ and a further 20% have missed out on a promotion because of their lack of self-belief
These statistics show that our self-confidence undoubtedly influences our performance, how we show-up, our behaviour, and the results we generate at work.
When I began researching career confidence, I reflected upon these statistics whilst also thinking about the confident people I have worked with over the years and what made them different from my other colleagues, clients, peers, and bosses? What is the fundamental trait they all exhibit on a daily basis, especially in times of stress and pressure? There a number of qualities to discuss but there is one that stands out above the rest…
OWNERSHIP.
Ownership is one of the most prominent character traits demonstrated by confident leaders and employees. They habitually own everything they do, regardless of the outcome. Confident people take responsibility for their actions – both the good and the bad!
These individuals have reduced self-doubt and by owning everything that they do, they have decreased the fear of being judged from their decision-making process.
They operate out of a mindset of opportunity & possibility vs, fear and worry.
Confident people own their actions and accept the consequences of their decisions because they are clear on their intention. This then guides their actions and, most importantly, their internal narrative.
We do not worry about what others think when we are clear on our intention.
HOW TO BE CONFIDENT IN THE WORKPLACE
So, what can be done if your career confidence isn’t where you want it to be? The good news is, Career Confidence isn’t something we are born with. It’s a trait that we can all build on over time, with some focused effort and commitment.
THE FIRST STEP IN BUILDING CONFIDENCE IS UNDERSTANDING WHY YOU HAVE LOW CONFIDENCE IN THE FIRST PLACE.
To help you get started I recommend trying out the Assessment Questions & Podcast link below. Use these the next time you notice yourself feeling the pulls of lacking self-confidence.
4 POWERFUL COACHING ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS TO HELP WITH CAREER CONFIDENCE
1) Ask yourself, “why do I feel this way?
2) What thought did I just think which made me feel/react the way I am?
3) Where did this thought come from? (is there an originating experience? Or did someone tell this to you when you were younger)
4) What thought could I replace this with (i.e. a thought which is more empowering, open-minded, less self-critical) which will give me a better outcome?
Additional Resources
If you’d like further help developing this mind mastery technique, check out Episode #6 on The ‘C’ Bomb Podcast here! In this episode, I walk you through this process in more detail and you learn how to truly master your thoughts and energy!
After several Q&A sessions with yourself, you’ll start to uncover some deep-seated beliefs & behaviors you may never have acknowledged – nor did you realize how much they have been impacting you.
Fear and self-doubt can plague your decision making habits, especially in high-stress situations. You need to take time for yourself and start breaking down your thought process to find the root causes of your actions and behaviors.
Once you start to address the reasons why you lack confidence, it’s important to start building positive habits that reinforce your willpower and in turn, confidence.
If you would like to discuss how to make this possible- please schedule a complimentary Discovery Call with me (CLICK HERE). I’d love to help you develop true self-confidence for yourself- across all areas of your life!
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Rebecca is the Founder & CEO of The Daily Guru. She sees Growth & Development as a vital part of anyone’s health & happiness, as well as being one of the most rewarding experiences we can all embrace.
