Before I started doing my own thing, I would have never thought confidence would be a problem for me. Not because I thought I was all that, but because I worked for years developing self-esteem. I have always been surrounded with people who made sure to encourage me and acknowledge my strengths. I tackled school and sports with a “can do” mentality and, if it didn’t work out (we lost the game, I did poorly on a test, etc.), I never allowed it to define my self-worth or limit my belief in myself. That is why it was especially surprising to me when all that went out the window as I started my business.

feels tied to your self-worth. As creative entrepreneurs, we are all just trying to figure it out as we go along and all that uncertainty can be a tough environment to build confidence.

The Confidence Code: The Science And Art of Self-Assurance – What Women Should Know; however, I am already fascinated by the effect this book could have on how I approach things in the future. I am especially interested because the book explores confidence from the female perspective, diving into the fact that women in particular seem to have a problem approaching situations with confidence.

The Confidence Code:

are right than men sound when they think they could be wrong?

And to a large extent, it is true. I think that most women are people pleasers.  Personally, I do not struggle with this but I realize that we are taught to be humble. We don’t want to come across as brash or abrasive or cocky because we want to be liked. And we definitely don’t want to be caught feeling incompetent, so we do not assert our full confidence unless we feel we are prepared to deliver.

sometimes confidence has to be intentional.

practicing it until you believe it.)

To show you an example of how you might apply this to your own life, I will share with you an exercise that a coach tried with me regarding introducing yourself as an entrepreneur when I had just started out.

_________ do _________.”)

It takes a little getting used to but when you don’t waiver, you will project a sense of confidence that other people will pick up on.

It can be difficult for us to state our prices in a matter of fact manner because it is hard to have full confidence in our value and our abilities. That is why you may have a tendency to quote prices by saying things such as:

“How do you feel about $X?”

and our clients and customers should believe in that value too.

My challenge to you is to find your confidence through intention.

Notice how I said find. It doesn’t happen overnight. It requires self discovery and going within yourself to pull out some of the parts you do believe in. Find ways to approach situations with certainty where you might have done so previously with hesitation. If you begin to intentionally remind yourself on a daily basis of the things you bring to the table and the people you can help with your gifts, you will begin to believe it in time. And that is when confidence can shift from being an intentional, mindful practice to something that is ingrained in everything you do.

We all have something unique to offer the world. Those who anchor themselves with confidence in that belief are the ones who make the difference.