Is Confidence a Bad Thing?

I read an interesting article in today’s Globe & Mail talking about how ‘confidence can be a bad thing’ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/confident-that-can-be-a-bad-thing/article18722504/

In this article, they mentioned that, in a study of 1,000 entrepreneurs, overconfidence led to decreased performance in both revenue growth and employment growth. They said that Americans are some of the most confident people with respect to math ability yet score near the bottom on international standardized tests (who knew?). In conducting his own research, the author found that students who were more confident ended up studying less, resulting in poor performance on exams.

He does go on to say that if you walk into a room exuding confidence and believing people will want to meet you, your prophecy will likely become true. Confidence also has a positive effect with starting a new business.

Personally, as I work with clients in my coaching practice, I try to instill that sense of confidence in them. It’s ok to say “I’m awesome”. It’s OK to be confident. The caveat is that you have to be able to talk the talk and walk the walk. If you come across as hesitant or unsure or uncertain as to who you are and what you can do, people will be less likely to invest you (i.e. buy from you, promote you or hire you in the first place).

As Wayne Gretzky once said ‘you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.’ And that is true. Getting out there, exuding confidence and determination are key. Just don’t become too cocky and think that you can succeed without the effort. Don’t forget Malcolm Gladwell’s theory (introduced in his book ‘Outliers’) that it takes 10,000 hours to perfect something.

Confidence is important. Hard work and determination are key.