Beating your self-consciousness
It doesn’t take a lot to hear what people honestly think about most politicians. Either they’re merely jesting around with you, or they are saying with conviction –politicians? All liars! Well I have news for you. It doesn’t take a long time to be in the design field to know that when it comes to manipulating, politicians are not alone in this, but designers too. Aha. Indeed, being in the creative field requires one to see things in various ways possible. Sometimes it requires one to break boundaries so much that the more bizzare your outlooks are, the better your design will appear. You may think this notion itself makes life easier for designers to get away with a recycled sardine can, however, all designers know one fact. The ability to conjure creative thinking is one thing, but to sell it is an entirely different ballgame. It is simply not enough to merely have the guts to stand in front of a row of panels that are more than willing to shoot you down. For any designer, defending his or her design is likened to defending his or her own life –no matter how anxious one is, it has to be done, and, with a striking confidence.
Sadly, this is where many of us, as we affectionately coined it, “die standing gracefully.”
Self-confidence is extremely important in almost every aspect of our lives, yet so many people struggle to find it. In the design field for instance, you might find people who are either too shy to stand up for their works –often nervous, fumbling and overly apologetic –or the other extreme –the ones who would neither point out a single flaw in their design nor agree when there are any being pointed out. To some, this group of designers are simply impossible –after all, only a small number of them are actually outstanding in their designed works, and yet we find ourselves anticipating their performance. They inspire confidence in those whom they occupy the same space with: their audience, their peers, their bosses, their customers, and their friends –and better –they know this too. They are well aware that gaining the confidence of others is one of the key ways in which a self-confident person finds success.
How do these people do it, you may ask? Now here is where it gets interesting –we could tell you all the processes such as begin with making a decision with what you really want to achieve, followed by a full-time commitment and then practise on having laser-like focus on that very goal. Yes, people who are self-assured don’t back out regardless of the amount of times they feel like breaking down. They know perseverence is the key to success –filtering the criticisms that you get; adopt the good ones and evaluate the bad. However, what truly matters in order to build your self-confidence lies greatly in the journey of the mind. In order to genuinely build self-confidence, you need to relieve your mind of any inhibitions. If you are convinced you are not good enough because people make you feel so and for so many years, begin with forgiving yourself for allowing it get to you. Negative thinking doesn’t bring you anywhere if you wish to be more confident. Focus on your past achievements rather than your failures.
Once you’re all set, only then you begin to take action. The great Carnegie once said, “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”
This will help you snap out of over thinking and just go and do whatever you want to get done. Over thinking much too long will only build an emotional resistance to the work you’ll do. Familiar with stories of anxious public speakers gaining more confidence once they get started? Exactly. Fear is a curious thing. Affirmations or other exercises for months in front of your mirror may have a positive effect that much is true. However, to be frank, if you don’t listen to the quotes above and face your fears you won’t experience any better self confidence on a deeper and more fundamental level. Having experiences where you face your fear is what really builds self confidence. There is no way around it.
