I recently had a conversation with a CEO who said, “If only you could help develop people to feel confident in themselves and not worry about stuff – they’d achieve so much more!” We then got into an interesting conversation about confidence, which inspired me to capture my thoughts on this.

Confidence is a very special attribute. It allows us to tackle life’s challenges with more certainty and, despite a potential lack in skills or knowledge required to overcome a particular problem, confidence feeds resourcefulness and creates success.

But where does the responsibility lie to develop confidence? The CEO was suggesting it’s the individual that needs developing (or fixing). Whilst I agree that as individuals we do have a role to play in developing our confidence, I’m concerned that not all organisations recognise their responsibility to build confidence by creating a working environment that does actually build confidence rather than erode it. Of course, by organisation I really mean the leaders in it.

I know organisations and leaders don’t intend to destroy their staff’s confidence (I sincerely hope!), but this is sometimes the consequence of misguided leadership. I believe we have a shared responsibility and leaders need to create an organisation that supports and builds confidence. Individually we can help ourselves too. Below I summarise how.

BUILDING CONFIDENCE IN THOSE WE LEAD

Organisations, and leaders, have a huge responsibility to think about the environment of wellbeing they create. Here’s my top seven ways for leaders to build trust and confidence in their teams, followed by a health warning of ways to lose it! First let’s consider how to create confidence and trust:

1. It’s about integrity
From the top down, integrity means keeping promises and telling the truth, no matter how difficult that might be. If its leaders have integrity, the organisation can be trusted.

2. Communication
Communication is the cornerstone of truth. Communicating the vision tells the team where the organisation is going, and the values outline the method of getting there.

3. Everyone is equal – know your team
Trust is established when every employee feels important. Leaders taking time to speak to staff, knowing their names, seeking opinions and ideas and treating everyone with genuine respect goes a long way to build confidence. Get to know who people are, not just what they do at work.

4. Praise and develop
Reinforce successes, give praise often – remember the amount of praise people need varies – are the people in your team thimbles, buckets or baths? Make any feedback constructive with a clear plan of how to develop and change.

5. Focus on shared goals
When everyone pulls together to achieve a shared vision, trust results. This is the essence of teamwork and when a team works, they really have confidence and trust one another.

6. Do what’s right
Instinct always tells you what’s ‘right’. Following your instinct, regardless of personal consequences, will create respect, and trust, from those around you.

DAMAGING CONFIDENCE

As we know, trust can so easily disintegrate. Here’s six silly mistakes for leaders to avoid:

1. Inconsistency in actions and words
Confusion, due to contraction, is a very quick way to lose confidence.

2. Out for personal gain
Being out only for yourself, especially in a team environment, is another quick route to diminishing confidence and trust.

3. Withholding information
When communication from the top down or bottom up closes, rumours start and misinformation is believed to be real. Trust will fall apart.

4. Regular criticism
Constantly pointing out what’s wrong and mistakes, with little focus on positives, destroys confidence.

5. Lie or tell half-truths
This is the quickest way to break a bond of confidence and trust.

6. Closed minds
An unwillingness to hear other people’s ideas or points of view will definitely damage personal confidence and evaporate trust.

This might seem like common sense, yet I do see all these attributes in the work I do and I see the consequences of these actions on both the leader and their disengaged, demoralised, untrusting teams. Encouraging your team to be the best they can be boosts their self-esteem and confidence, and in turn, their achievements create success for your department or division.

BUILDING CONFIDENCE IN YOURSELF

First thing’s first – there’s no quick fix to becoming uber-confident! But, becoming more confident really is achievable, you just need the focus and determination to carry things through. Each time you succeed, your self-confidence will automatically build and so you’ll succeed again… and again… and again.

Here’s some top tips to help boost your confidence at work:

· Don’t be afraid to ask questions
Regardless of where you are in your career, you are not expected to know everything. Arm yourself with all the information you need to complete a task successfully by asking for it.

· Be open to feedback

If you hear yourself (out loud or in your head) defending your position, make time to stop and reflect on what truth/value there might be in the feedback you received.

· Don’t be afraid of mistakes
We’re not perfect and sometimes it happens. But make sure you analyse and learn from where it went wrong, remind yourself of your successful projects and then reset to a positive frame of mind. No-one improves by beating themselves up.

· “I can’t…” v’s “How can I…”
Your mind set can limit your confidence. When you open your minds to question possibilities and find solutions, particularly in a situation which takes you outside of your comfort zone, the euphoria of success is immense. Positive mental attitude!

· Good Book
Keep a journal or ‘good book’ where once a day or week you capture all the successes, no matter how small, that you have had.

· Learning and practising
Learning new topics, skills or processes undoubtedly boosts confidence. But practice, practice, practice is the foundation of success. Every time you complete a task, ask yourself how you could improve on it even more for next time.

· “Fake it until you make it!”
Undertaking a new job or new task obviously can make you feel under-confident. Dressing well, being friendly, making eye contact and a good handshake will all give the impression that you’re confident and in control and, if the world thinks you can do it, you’ll start believing it too.

In Summary

Confident people are more positive, believe in themselves and their abilities and often live life to the full. Organisations have a responsibility to provide a nurturing and positive environment, but individuals must have the strength to believe in themselves and, if that self-esteem is lacking, then there is an equal responsibility to govern your own behaviours and ask for help and development. Outside help, such as coaches and trainers, can create tailored activities to motive and boost self-esteem, which in turn creates a more positive work environment and better productivity.

I'D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS.

If you’d like to chat more about how we can help leaders and individuals develop confidence, please do get in touch.

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