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Confidence
It seems to me that there are two components to confidence:
(The two are intertwined; acknowledging failure and accepting its consequences doesn't necessarily mean that you can't try again, which is where the persistent belief that you have a reasonable chance of success comes in.)
Lacking any belief that you have a reasonable chance of success is pessimism - you're not only willing to acknowledge failure but expecting it.
Lacking a persistent belief that you have a reasonable chance of success is false confidence - as soon as you fail, you'll be back to pessimism.
Lacking a belief that you have a reasonable chance of success - believing, instead, that you have a perfect chance of success - is arrogance.
Lacking a willingness to acknowledge failure and accept its consequences is delusion.
Lacking both - believing that you can't succeed and being unwilling to acknowledge failure - is also delusion, but one that leads to isolationism; if you can't succeed and won't accept failure, then the only course of action is not to try at all.
As it appears to me, then, the key to self-confidence is to abandon the fear of failure and to acknowledge the chance of success. Ipso facto, the key to gaining self-confidence is to figure out how to abandon the fear of failure and to acknowledge the chance of success.
Any thoughts? Am I completely off-base?
- A persistent belief that you have a reasonable chance of success; and
- A willingness to acknowledge failure and accept its consequences.
(The two are intertwined; acknowledging failure and accepting its consequences doesn't necessarily mean that you can't try again, which is where the persistent belief that you have a reasonable chance of success comes in.)
Lacking any belief that you have a reasonable chance of success is pessimism - you're not only willing to acknowledge failure but expecting it.
Lacking a persistent belief that you have a reasonable chance of success is false confidence - as soon as you fail, you'll be back to pessimism.
Lacking a belief that you have a reasonable chance of success - believing, instead, that you have a perfect chance of success - is arrogance.
Lacking a willingness to acknowledge failure and accept its consequences is delusion.
Lacking both - believing that you can't succeed and being unwilling to acknowledge failure - is also delusion, but one that leads to isolationism; if you can't succeed and won't accept failure, then the only course of action is not to try at all.
As it appears to me, then, the key to self-confidence is to abandon the fear of failure and to acknowledge the chance of success. Ipso facto, the key to gaining self-confidence is to figure out how to abandon the fear of failure and to acknowledge the chance of success.
Any thoughts? Am I completely off-base?