Welcome

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and thoroughly enjoyed time with friends, family and loved ones. Giving special care to those that found themselves alone this Christmas.

For me it was certainly a busy one with some travel but nothing could beat the face of my daughter waking up on that Christmas morning with a huge hunger for opening everyone’s presents.

Hopefully you have been able to get some time to yourself too!

With a follow up to last weeks edition where I looked at building resilience, which when looking at good things to manage stress building resilience is one key thing to do and understand. One other thing that can be really useful is building confidence.

In a strange way this really helps in helping with managing and reducing stress, it has for me and hopefully can be something for you too.

Why Confidence Complements Resilience

Last week, we focused on resilience, the ability to adapt, bounce back, and grow stronger through challenges. Resilience helps you endure the tough times, but confidence empowers you to take proactive steps forward.

Confidence as a leader isn’t about always having the answers. It’s about believing in your ability to figure things out, lead with clarity, and inspire trust in those around you. It’s a skill that can be cultivated and one that directly impacts how your team perceives and responds to challenges. It may seem strange but having confidence is almost a pretty much set requirement for being a leader.

The Confidence-Resilience Connection

• Resilience Helps You Recover: Emotional resilience enables you to bounce back from setbacks.

• Confidence Helps You Move Forward: Confidence allows you to step into uncertainty and make decisions, even when the path isn’t clear.

Together, they form the foundation for proactive, effective leadership. Without confidence, resilience can become passive; without resilience, confidence can crumble under pressure.

Common Confidence Challenges for Leaders

Even the most seasoned leaders struggle with confidence. Here are a few common scenarios and their impact:

• Imposter Syndrome: Doubting your abilities, especially when stepping into a new role or facing a big challenge.

• Fear of Failure: Hesitating to make decisions because of potential negative outcomes.

• Comparing Yourself to Others: Measuring your success against others, which can lead to feelings of inadequacy.

Recognising these challenges is the first step toward addressing them.

Practical Strategies to Build Confidence as a Leader

1. Reflect on Past Successes:

   • Regularly remind yourself of challenges you’ve overcome and the skills you’ve developed along the way.

   • Action: Create a “wins log” to document your achievements, big or small, and revisit it when self-doubt creeps in.

2. Embrace Continuous Learning:

   • Confidence grows when you feel prepared. Invest in learning opportunities to build your skills and knowledge.

   • Action: Identify one area you want to improve and commit to learning or practicing it consistently.

3. Reframe Failures:

   • Shift your mindset from seeing failure as a negative to viewing it as a necessary step for growth.

   • Action: After a setback, ask yourself, “What can I learn from this, and how will it help me grow?”

4. Prepare, Then Trust Yourself:

   • Preparation builds confidence, but at some point, you need to trust your instincts and make decisions.

   • Action: Give yourself a set amount of time to gather information, then act decisively without second-guessing.

5. Seek and Act on Feedback:

   • Confidence isn’t about knowing it all; it’s about being open to learning and improvement.

   • Action: Ask for feedback from trusted colleagues or mentors to gain perspective and identify areas for growth.

Building Confidence Within Your Team

Your confidence as a leader directly impacts your team. When you lead with assurance, your team feels more secure and motivated. Here’s how to foster confidence within your team:

• Encourage Decision-Making: Empower team members to take ownership of their work and make decisions.

• Recognize Strengths: Highlight individual and team strengths to build self-belief.

• Celebrate Wins: Regularly acknowledge achievements to reinforce positive momentum.

Questions to Reflect On

1. What are three moments in my career where I successfully overcame challenges?

2. How can I use those experiences to guide me through current or future challenges?

3. What’s one skill I could develop that would boost my confidence as a leader?

Book Recommendation: The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman

Overview:
The Confidence Code explores the science behind confidence and how to develop it. While written with a focus on women, its insights are universally applicable to anyone looking to build self-assurance. This book offers some great insights in building confidence and helping you develop new ways of thinking about confidence.

3 Key Takeaways:

1. Confidence Is a Skill: Confidence isn’t innate—it’s developed through action and practice.

2. Take More Risks: Avoid over-preparing and take action even when you don’t feel 100% ready.

3. Learn from Failure: Each misstep is a stepping stone toward growth and resilience.

And that’s a wrap for this week.

Hopefully you can leverage these tips and guidance for building more confidence as a leader in 2025. It’s something that we all need for sure!