What Is Confidence?

Picture this: you have completely lost all ability to think about the past or future. No memories to look back on, no future scenarios to imagine.

I tell you that you need to deliver a speech to 1000 people waiting in the next room on a topic you know nothing about. 

What would happen?

Would you get stressed, anxious or panic?

Would you get an adrenaline rush, butterflies or that lurching dread in your stomach? 

No.

How could you? 

You’d have no thoughts suggesting all the things that might go wrong, how unprepared you were, how unfair it is to be asked. 

You wouldn’t get that dropping sensation in your stomach because there’d be no thoughts. There’d be no panic, no anxiety, no worry, no fretting. 

You wouldn't be self-conscious as there wouldn’t be any self-referential thoughts. 

You’d simply walk out and start talking, your imagination flowing freely.  

Complete confidence. Nothing holding you back.

And it’s nothing to do with your ability or skill. 

You’ve simply lost your ability to think. 

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We all like to feel confident. 

It makes us feel like we’re in control, that we know what we’re doing and that we are safe.

But your level of confidence has nothing to do with your ability. 

Absolutely none at all. 

We’ve all seen confident people that have no idea what they’re doing. 

And others that know exactly what to do, but aren’t confident enough to do it.

Maybe that’s sometimes you. (It’s definitely been me). 

So, if confidence has nothing to do with ability, what’s it based on?

The truth is that feeling confident is simply a lack of any thoughts suggesting that we’re not. 

And that’s all that thoughts are, suggestions. They’re not facts, statements, true or real. 

So what should you do when you become aware of thoughts suggesting otherwise?

Absolutely nothing. 

Simply remember that the nature of your mind is for thoughts to come and go. 

You do not create your thoughts, you are simply aware of them appearing and disappearing. 

That’s what they’re meant to do - go in and out. They’re not meant to stick around or linger. 

The ones that do can turn into beliefs and patterns (and tend to hold us back in some way). 

So confidence is, quite simply, the absence of any thinking.

You therefore don’t need to do anything to be confident, you already are, it’s only your thoughts that sometimes suggest that you’re not. 

And if these thoughts arise, rather than focusing on them, trying to change them or replacing them with ‘better’ thoughts, practice simply letting them go.

And allow your confidence to simply be there, as it's meant to be.

You can practice letting thoughts go anytime you like. Even right now.

And practice makes permanent.