You knew the answerConfidence

unbry

You knew the answer

A short book about self-doubt

16 chapters14,911 wordsAbout 68 minFirst edition

What's inside

·Before you startThis is a short book. You can read it in three or four evenings. It's for people whose doubt about themselves gets in the way of things they're able to…2 min
1Ten minutes later, someone else said itHere's an example. It's Monday, and the team is trying to work out why sign-ups fell last month. You noticed something on Thursday. The form doesn't load…4 min
2What stepping back buys youGo back to the Monday meeting and slow down the moment in which you decided not to speak. Just before it, something was happening in your body. Perhaps…4 min
3"If I doubt it, there must be a reason"This is the belief that holds the rest up. You feel doubtful, so you assume the doubt has noticed something. Feelings often have. Unease on a dark street…4 min
4"Everyone else seems so sure"Look round the table at that Monday meeting. The others speak in finished sentences. They say "clearly" and "obviously". Nobody looks as if their heart is…4 min
5"Doubt keeps me sharp"You have a presentation on Thursday. By Tuesday night you've been through the slides four times and you know them. On Wednesday night you go through them…4 min
6"If I don't try, I can't fail"Go back to the job advert from chapter 1, open in its tab for four days and closed on the Friday. Or take the quieter version of the same move. You do…4 min
7"At least I'm not arrogant"You probably know someone who is never in doubt. He talks over people in meetings. He doesn't check things. He's wrong fairly often and doesn't seem to…4 min
8"They were only being kind"Your manager stops at your desk and says the report was excellent, exactly what the board needed. Before she has finished the sentence, your mind is at…4 min
9"Can I just check this with you?"The email from chapter 1 didn't go straight to the client. You wrote it, polished it, and then forwarded it to a colleague with "does this sound OK?" She…4 min
10"I'll do it when I feel ready"You're going to apply for the senior role next year, when you feel more ready. You'll offer to speak at the conference once you're more confident on your…4 min
11Where you learned itIn chapter 1 I said your doubt is selective, and that something so selective was probably learned. It's worth drawing the map. Where is your doubt strong?…5 min
12The decisionHere's where the argument has got to. The doubt and the step back are separate, and the second is a habit. The habit pays in quick relief and costs you…5 min
13When it goes wrongIt will, in two ways. Sometimes you'll act against the doubt and it will go badly. And sometimes you'll step back again, after you'd decided not to. They…6 min
14The next timeSomewhere in the next few days there'll be a moment like the ones in chapter 1. You'll notice something in a meeting, or see something you could apply…2 min
·NotesThis book gives general information. It isn't medical or psychological advice, and it's no substitute for a doctor or therapist who knows your situation.…7 min

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