Common Sense Ideas for Becoming the Career Star You Are Meant to Be

Today is Monday, so this post is on self confidence.

I thought that I would post a few of my favorite quotes on self confidence here today.

• “Self confidence is the first requisite to great undertakings.”  Samuel Johnson
• “Confidence is a habit that can be developed by acting as if you already had the confidence you desire to have.”  Brian Tracy
• “Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.”  Pope John XXIII
• “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”  Dale Carnegie
• “Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong." Peter T. McIntyre
• “The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly”  Teddy Roosevelt
• “We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.”  Frank Tibolt
• “Self confidence is one important key to success.  Preparation is an important key to self confidence.”  Arthur Ashe

Read on for my thoughts on these quotes...

I have posted these quotes in this order because they follow a logical progression (to me at least).

Samuel Johnson tells us that self confidence is necessary if we are going to accomplish anything.  That’s why self confidence is the first point on my career star model, and something about which I post every Monday.

Brian Tracy tells us to “act as if” we are self confident – even if we aren’t.  Because if we do, we’ll eventually become self confident.  I subscribe to this “fake it till you make it” philosophy.  It worked for me when I was a young guy conducting my first supervisory training programs over 30 years ago.  That’s why positive personal impact is another point on my career star model.  Acting as if you are confident – even if you aren’t – will help you make a positive personal impact.  This positive personal impact will result in people reacting positively to you.  People reacting positively to you will increase your self confidence.  It’s a nice upward spiral.

Pope John XXIII tells us to forget about past failures and focus on our potential.  He points out that it’s never too late to become a success.  This advice dovetails nicely with what Dale Carnegie has to say about the importance of action – actually doing something.  The mere fact that we try – even if we fail – helps build our self confidence and courage.

Peter McIntyre reinforces this point when he tells us to not fear failure.  If we live our lives being afraid of how we might fail, we’ll never accomplish anything.  There is an old saying that “a ship is safe only when it is in a safe harbor -- but that’s not the purpose of ships”.  The same is true for human beings.   If we only do what is safe, and easily accomplished, we'll never reach our full potential.

Teddy Roosevelt echoes these thoughts.  In essence, he says “better to try and fail, then not to try at all”.  By the way, this is one of my favorite quotes.  I used it to introduce one of my books.

Frank Tibolt tells us that action leads to inspiration – not the other way around.  Finally, Arthur Ashe tells us that action is good – but preparation before action is even better.

Here are the common sense points I take from these quotes:

• Be confident that you can reach my dreams and potential.
• Be willing to take a risk and do something when you are not confident that you will succeed.
• Relish the challenge of being in the arena – where many people can see your triumphs and failures.
• Be willing to prepare before putting yourself out there.

Like all common sense, these points are easy to say – harder to do.  But like all applied common sense, the rewards associated with doing them will be great.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for reading.  Log on to my website www.BudBilanich.com for more common sense.  Check out my other blog: www.CommonSenseGuy.com for common sense advice on leading people and running a small business.

I’ll see you around the web, and at Alex’s Lemonade Stand.

Bud

PS: Speaking of Alex’s Lemonade Stand – my fundraising page is still open.  Please go to www.FirstGiving.com/TheCommonSenseGuy to read Alex’s inspiring story and to donate if you can.