Confidence

Confidence is a tricky thing. One minute you’re full steam ahead, knowing that fulfilling your goals and dreams is almost within reach. The next thing you know, life throws a nice little wrench at you (i.e. your car blows up and needs to be replaced) and you just can’t imagine how you’ll ever get there.

I would say that I am slightly more confident than the average man or woman, but not as confident as I’d like to be. It’s not the level of confidence that I’m worried about, but rather the consistency. It’s easy to be confident when everything is working out and falling into place. The hard part is how to maintain that confidence when the inevitable problems arise.

I have experienced this first-hand in the poker tournament world. Poker tournaments are like roller-coasters, and you rarely just keep accumulating chips (unless you’re Jamie Gold in the 2006 WSOP Main Event). Instead, it’s often taking one step back to move two steps forward. You will often lose a good chunk of your tournament chips in a short period of time or one hand. This may be from your own mistake, another player’s poor play, or just bad luck. Becoming a short stack is just a part of poker tournaments; and the difference between great players and average ones is how they handle the unavoidable setbacks and avoid going on tilt (making further mistakes). Some of the biggest tournaments I have won have been coming back from a short stack, and looking back, I couldn’t have done it without three important things: patience, confidence, and a little luck.

So, the question is, how do you maintain that confidence when the chips seem stacked against you? First off, you don’t have to do it alone. While ego may prevent you from asking for help, that’s what family, friends, and business partners/associates are there for. Having a strong support network in place will give you the confidence to tackle the problems. See the Big Picture (easier said then done). Is this a huge roadblock or just a minor congestion? Don’t turn a small problem into a large crisis. At the same time, don’t avoid the big problems; procrastination will just make them worse. Often just tackling the problem is a lot easier than constantly worrying about it. And lastly, coach yourself up. Do a little Stuart Smalley (of SNL fame) and look in the mirror and tell yourself: I’m Good Enough, I’m Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me! :)