You will find that success is rooted in your ability to understand and express your life force, the vitality and motivation that drives and inspires you. A true communicator is someone who can translate human thoughts, feelings and emotions, making them come alive so that others are moved by them. But for many people, sharing ourselves, our emotions and feelings and creating a genuine connection with others can be a very challenging task.
The ultimate challenge is to be willing and able to cause people to feel something, to have an experience. How to do this is an art—but not a mystery.
It starts with your awareness of and appreciation for your unique qualities. What makes you “You”? If you can’t accept and truly appreciate who you are, others can tell and it will seriously undermine your power and influence—and confidence. We need to start by checking in with ourselves, then how we interact with people and how well we’re communicating our message. Are people inspired enough to buy your product or sign on to your agenda? Sometimes acting as if you have confidence can be indistinguishable from the real thing and gives you the experience of being seen as confident. Then, when people treat you as a confident person it is self-reinforcing: it helps you build the natural, genuine confidence that is so compelling and powerful.
It means not just allowing ourselves to be seen but to be seen clearly, with all the bold strokes and subtle finesse that make us who we are- yes, warts and all. If we have warts (and we all do) we must accept them and make friends with them until we can reduce or have them removed. In day-to-day, informal interactions we just go about our business “being ourselves” without much thought or awareness, however the prospect of being in the spotlight and having to deliver can be paralyzing and even downright painful filling people with fear and tension. It doesn’t have to be that way.
How Can I Have Unshakable Confidence?
What is required is the creation of an internal, independent support system. You know and accept and appreciate who and what you are. You are armed with all this ammunition to sustain and encourage yourself and build self-esteem. You are ready to risk failure and success. You have begun to explore and build on a foundation of trusting your impulses and perceptions. It’s all about taking the time to check in with yourself.
Imagine you are standing in front of yourself, watching. You especially want to do this when you know you’re going to be on the spot, when it’s “show time” and you have to perform. It could be at a team meeting, having lunch with a new client or doing a presentation or even a job interview. What is it like in those moments just before you introduce yourself? Are you aware of how you’re perceived or do you assume people are seeing each of your flaws and judging you for them? Let me reassure you: yes, when you stand up, when you speak out, when you find yourself in center stage, people are scrutinizing you and likely judging you. Knowing that, but not letting it completely throw you off or derail your progress is a sign of unshakeable confidence.
Once you become more aware, accepting, and appreciative of who you are, you can accept the challenge of becoming your greatest self. This will put you on the road to Unshakeable Confidence– the ability to stand with responsibility, power and poise in the face of any situation.