Do you have Courageous Confidence? Would you like to“Build Courageous Confidence”
Courageous Confidence comes from owning our power, valuing and trusting yourself, as well as believing in yourself. Owning your power and having confidence is not being arrogant, demanding and judgmental or belittling of others. In fact, that is pretty much putting a hole in your power! That can come across as being egotistical, or just plain being a jerk.
I want to talk with you about the 3 Essential Skills to Own Your Power to Create Courageous Confidence. When you master these 3 essential skills, you are empowered as a leader, are influential in all that you do, and happier within your own skin. It is a lot easier to love yourself when you are awesome, right?
A few weeks ago, my husband and I went to one of our favorite places, Lake Powell. On this trip we found the perfect private little island with a beautiful sand beach that had sandcastles already built! Our own little lagoon. It was absolutely majestic.
On our third day there, Bill said, “I want to take you out for an Ice Cream.” I was excited, this meant going into the marina! It would take us about three hours round trip, because we would not be taking the cabin cruiser. We would be taking Bill’s special boat. This would be the boat I have come to affectionately call “The Little Dingy”. It is his 4 person raft, a blow up boat! It is four feet wide and eleven feet long. But you need to know this boat comes equipped with a 5 speed electric motor and all the bells and whistles like fishing pole holders and air filled cushions!
We take off. Bill is fishing. I am catching some rays, the dogs are on point
watching the ducks and we are listening to a book. As we get into the marina we have to pass all of the yachts and houseboats. In fact, we passed right by the houseboat that we used to own. As we float past the “Mirage” houseboat, we probably looked like we were in a life boat sitting next to the cruise ship! We go around all the rental houseboats and pull into the first slip at the dock. At this point, I begin to notice all of the people looking at us. I’m sure that they are not admiring “The Little Dingy”. We tie up our boat and Bill hops up onto the dock, thinking nothing of his audience! I on the other hand, am very aware of the attention we have drawn, especially the six adults sitting in lawn chairs out on the deck of the 70’ luxury rental right next to us! They were staring at us because we were their entertainment!
The dock is over waist high. As I stand up. I am trying to keep my balance in the little dingy and not go overboard! Have you ever tried to stand up in a raft in the middle of a lake? It is like trying to balance on top
of a beach ball! I am not quite as agile as I once was but I grab the rope and Bill’s hand and pull myself up onto the dock. We go in, get our waffle cones and go back out and sit at a table close by our boat and watch as the audience gets even bigger. We even have people talking to our dogs now that are still aboard The Little Dingy!! By this time I am very embarrassed. I can only imagine what they are thinking! I start to feel inferior, inadequate and I am kind of freaking out!
Have you ever felt embarrassed, inadequate or inferior around co-workers, your boss, your family, an audience, even strangers?
WHY? Why do we allow this to happen? When we do this we are giving them our power!
In this case, I had owned a houseboat; I currently have a cabin cruiser waiting for me down the lake. We go to the Lake 6 times a year. It was INSANE for me to let this take my power away from me! It is our responsibility to OWN OUR POWER.
We all do this at times. I honestly did not know what they were thinking! I am not a mind reader. Most of the time what we imagine they are thinking is completely wrong or quite exaggerated. Besides that, what someone else is thinking is none of your business! They are evaluating the situation from their perspective, making judgments according to their own beliefs and experiences. They have no idea what you have been through, why you are doing what you are doing and most of them do not really care.
Think about it, “No one can make you feel inferior, inadequate or embarrassed without your consent.”
“We do not see things as they are; we see things as we are.” From our perspective, our experiences, our views according to our beliefs and values.
I want to share with you the 3 Essential Skills to Create Courageous Confidence:
First: Value Yourself.
We get to redefine how we feel about our self. We get to know of our value and own it. This means taking care of you, nurturing relationships, health and wellness and being positive. It also means loving, honoring and forgiving you.
Second: Trust Yourself.
People work with people that they know, like and trust, but it must begin with you! It’s time to Stop doubting, judging and criticizing you. Trust yourself if you want others to trust you. Trust your decisions, trust your ideas, trust your heart. Start where you are and go from there.
Third: Believe in Yourself.
One way to believe in you is to build on what you do have and not on what you don’t have. Build on what you are passionate about. Build on your attributes and qualities. Build on your beliefs, your talents, your ideas, your humor, your vision. Build on being your true authentic self. Others will believe in you when you believe in you.
Back to our story….My husband and I climbed back into The Little Dingy, (without going overboard). As we made our way back past all of the yachts and houseboats, it dawned on me…. Why was I allowing this in my space at all? I knew better. I teach it. We were doing exactly what we wanted to be doing. We were having a great day.
By using these 3 Essential Skills, Value yourself, Trust yourself and Believe in yourself; you can own your power. You can be empowered in your Leadership, influential in your relationships and happy in your life.
“Courageous Confidence is something you create within yourself by believing in who you are and who you are meant to be!” ~Kris Barney