Cristina Dovan on unreasonable confidence

In 7th grade, my Math teacher challenged my confidence when she come in the classroom and asked who the best at English in my class is and everybody either pointed at me or said my name.  She asked me to stand up and said she heard in the teacher’s lounge my name and how I am the best at English in school and she could not believe it so she had to ask again to make sure she heard it right. Just because my Math skills were not as good, she could not understand how is it that I am good at English so she lectured me in front of everyone. It felt like she meant it as humiliation I took it as praise, I knew I don’t like Math and I love English, so I didn’t allowed her opinion to stop me, I came to England and studied, my life is now here, I was preparing for my future not even knowing it.

Her opinion of me did not stopped my journey and did not shook my confidence it actually boosted it. She did not see what it was in my heart so she could not define who I am just because she could not see my potential. This is what I call unreasonable confidence, not stopping because others do not see your potential, not everybody is supposed to see it.

Unreasonable confidence defies the odds, it is the belief in yourself that you will succeed regardless of your circumstances and is not dependent on outside validation, it does not rely on skills or abilities, it is something that comes from within and sometimes it is difficult to explain to others. You live from that belief, everything you do comes from that unexplainable confidence that you have. Unreasonable confidence is what drives athletes, entrepreneurs and artists to do outstanding work, have extraordinary results, unreasonable confidence breaks barriers, fuels persistence and it inspire others. If your confidence has been challenged understand why, who made you feel less confident? Below I will offer three tips to help you tap into the confidence that lies dormant within you.

                Three tips to help you fuel unreasonable confidence:

    Tip number one

Build unshakable confidence by visualising the end goal and embrace the process, who you become in the process is as important if not more important than the result, everything you learn is in the process, the result is just a ‘consequence’ of your actions. Successful people first see the journey in their mind, Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Michael Phelps; they all used visualization to improve their game. It helped them learn more about their strengths and weaknesses, they could see potential obstacles and focus better because they know where they have to arrive and what it takes to succeed before it happens, and this is how you become a champion before you get the title, with the use of visualization.

                                                                                   Tip number two

Take bold action. You build confidence by doing; unreasonable confidence thrives from implementing and executing on your ideas. As the saying goes ‘Fortune favours the bold’, you cannot expect results without action. You are one bold move away from greatness, do not delay action and explore new ideas every day. Build your future one move at a time, success takes time, being successful is not about how much you make, it is about resilience, stamina, what you had to overcome in order to succeed, the transformation you are going through and who you become in this journey of self-discovery.

                                                                                  Tip number three

Rejection is redirection, failure is feedback and it is an important part of the roadmap, do not take it to heart and never let failure stop you. You are supposed to learn from everything that happens to you and failure is part of the journey. Imagine that the problem is not that you aim high and fail, the problem is you aim low and succeed, many people aim low and succeed so they stay there because they are scared of failure, going big can end up in failure and they can’t handle that so they play small. Do not avoid failure because you are missing out on important information that not only will help you achieve your goals but it will pave the way for future endeavours. What you learn from failure is priceless information that builds you for your future, exactly what happened that day in Math, I learned I needed to follow my strengths and that change my life forever.

Unreasonable confidence is having the power not to allow your circumstances stop you from reaching your full potential, nobody other than you is supposed to fuel your potential and that means never relying on outside validation. It is only you; you are the one to change your life. What is ‘unreasonable’ for others is what fuels you to achieve the unbelievable. What is stopping you to be unreasonable in the pursuit of your dreams?

About the author

Cristina is a certified life coach specialising in mindset, transformation, and writer who blends her passion for human behavior with her experience in digital entrepreneurship. She embarked on her personal development journey over five years ago and is now devoted to using her insights to help others transform their lives. Cristina’s story is one of growth and change, starting from her academic roots in International Relations to launching her own business in 2020. She lives in Coventry, United Kingdom, and is dedicated to guiding her clients towards realizing their full potential.