What's the difference between self-esteem and self-confidence? Self-esteem is how a person values themselves — the ability to assess yourself without the influence of others. Self-confidence is a completely different thing. It's about how much you BELIEVE in your own abilities. So:
- Self-esteem — your value of yourself.
- Self-confidence — your belief in your capabilities.
Self-confidence is the quality of being able to rely only on yourself. And having the belief that you'll handle whatever circumstances arise.
Often people struggle with both self-esteem and self-confidence. They're interconnected. If a person lacks self-confidence, it means they're constantly focused on problems. We were taught that mistakes are bad. And when the focus is only on what's not working — your image of yourself shrinks.
At school, I had very low self-confidence. And I simply sat down and started writing about the qualities I was good at. Because initially I was focused only on the bad. I started writing every detail that I did well — and realized I was far more capable than I thought. That exercise changed the game for me.
It's very important to learn to interact with and understand yourself. Because the first step to achieving great goals is the ability to manage yourself and your emotions. Notice how when you set a goal — say, start running in the mornings — in the morning your mind gives you 100 reasons not to? That's the gap between intention and action. Confidence lives in closing that gap repeatedly.
Self-confidence is essentially a formula: Self-confidence = Trust in yourself × Self-esteem × Capabilities (resources) you possess.
How to become more self-confident? If you want to do something but are afraid — you must analyze exactly what you're afraid of and strengthen that. For example, if you're not confident you'll pass an exam — the only way to eliminate the fear is to prepare thoroughly. Confidence is built by doing the thing that scares you, repeatedly, until fear transforms into competence.
So we can write out three fundamental criteria of self-confidence:
- Trust in yourself;
- Level of self-esteem;
- Capabilities (resources) you possess.
In one book I read that entrepreneurs are people with high professional skills but low self-esteem. It's not that their self-esteem is high — it's that their standards for themselves are extremely high. They constantly feel their achievements aren't enough. That's why they never stop. And sometimes that relentless drive is the gift, not the problem.
