Happy This ONE Friday!

The hot topic this week is confidence. Isn’t it always a hot topic? Even the most confident people second-guess themselves when their ego takes a hit. Confidence is our judgment and perception of ourselves—essentially, our sense of how well we will fare in this world doing what we do.

Interestingly, many of us link confidence firmly to competence. It’s common to feel a lack of confidence when we believe we “don’t know enough.” Yet, many wish to feel confident even in these situations, implying that it’s possible to be confident without being fully competent.

This forces us to separate confidence from competence; otherwise, we are setting ourselves up for impossible expectations. Confidence should not be dependent on our knowledge or capabilities.

One client made a surprising connection between confidence and the flow state when adopting a “craftsman” mindset. A craftsman is acutely aware of their own flaws, but rather than using this awareness for self-judgment and shaming—thus diminishing confidence—they use it as a catalyst for further discovery with curiosity.

In the craftsman’s world, perhaps there is no need for something called “confidence.” Instead, there is just presence, curiosity, and a view of the learning journey as an adventure.

So, how can we achieve confidence? Maybe it’s not about confidence at all.

Question For You

What do you resonate with in this article about confidence and competence?

If you aspire to adopt a craftsman’s mindset and view each day as a learning journey, let’s have a conversation.

P.S. In case you’re wondering, I’ve missed two Fridays in a row due to travel and health issues. These last two weeks have kept me away from hitting the gym and, more importantly, from amplifying the inspiration I get from working with many of you.

But I’m getting back into it!

Until next week,

Yolanda Yu
Coach and lifelong learner

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Past issues

This ONE – How trustworthy are you?

This ONE – Specificity in action: From Drama Class to Strategic Thinking, Leadership, and Managing your boss

This ONE: Competition and the matter of envy, jealousy, peer pressure, and external validation

This ONE: Office politics, toxic environment, and other people’s judgment

This ONE: From the gym, harnessing creativity in flow, and focus with my ADHD brain

This ONE: What’s the point? The leadership grill, unstuck from tech roles, and job searching in a bad market

This ONE: On fulfilling career potential, how to be more assertive, and the powerful way to manage difficult conversations.

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Every Friday, I share ONE idea and its manifestations and 1 question for you to ponder. Other ingredients you can expect will be book extracts, quotes, metaphors, tools, resources, and mini-exercises to keep growing your self-awareness.