| Epiphany number 1 - a little trick I used to improve confidence
Before I begin, this isn't exactly new information, but I plan on getting deeper and deeper as the blog goes on.
As I mentioned before, I used to think I was a pretty confident guy, because I could stand up and deliver presentations with ease, I would have no problem going to a party knowing minimal people as I knew I could get to know people.
But put me in a situation that I'm not used to and boy did the nerves come. I used to have a phobia of calling people of greater authority than me, for example bosses or potential future employers. I would sit around rehearsing what I had to say and would usually be thinking about it half an hour after hanging up.
So, what did I do to overcome this? (I have 99% overcome this). I remembered a time when I was at the beach and wanted to go in the sea. I was slowly walking in, but it was bloody freezing so it was taking me ages. I then said to myself, at the end of the day I'm going to be in the sea one way or the other, if it takes me half an hour to walk in, that's half an hour less I can be enjoying it (or my free time spent elsewhere). So, like most people who aren't as wimpy as me, I dived in.
From then, whenever I had an important/nerve racking phone call to make, I remembered that story. So I dove right in and dial the number as quick as possible, to the point where now I don't even think twice about calling people.
I like how that metaphor relates absolutely perfectly to most things in life. You can either spend your precious time worrying/rehearsing, knowing inevitably you will either do it eventually or not do it and let it hang over your head, stealing you from the present moment. Or you can dive right in, feel great afterwards, and realise it's the step that you took that improves your confidence, not the result. I also found that when you master one thing, it seems to have a carry over onto other aspects of your life. Almost like a snowball effect of confidence.
Are there any other little tricks/metaphors/philosophies you guys use to improve your confidence? I'd love to learn them.
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