Why confidence is critical for mental health, and how to turn it into daily actions that build real change
This is my Smoke Break — usually a segment just for paid subscribers, where I share reflections from my own process of evolution in the hopes they might serve you too. No answers, just pieces of my journey. Today, I'd like to share a part of this Smoke Break with all my subscribers. I then go a little deeper behind the paywall.
This Smoke Break reflects on confidence as a practice.
Confidence is crucial to mental health and, consequently, to our overall quality of life. It shapes how we move, the decisions we make, and what we accept for ourselves.
As noted in Psychology Today:
“Projecting confidence helps people gain credibility, make a strong first impression, deal with pressure, and tackle personal and professional challenges. It’s also an attractive trait, as confidence helps put others at ease.”
I want to offer that confidence is also a disciplined practice. You won’t always feel it. Our feelings fluctuate with circumstances and seasons of life. But discipline, self-awareness, and emotional maturity enable us to rise above the moment and act in accordance with self-love despite how we might feel.
In that sense, confidence might be compared to love; it's best thought of as an action rather than a noun.
Here are a few guiding questions you can ask yourself the next time you’re facing a difficult decision:
What would the most confident version of myself do?
If I loved myself entirely, without doubt about what I’m capable of and what I deserve, what choice would I make?
Would I accept this? Would this be enough? Would I demand more?
Would confidence mean going back — or walking away?
What does confidence look like in this moment, in action?
Does it look like not responding?
Not explaining myself?
Showing up even when I feel unsure?
Forgiving myself for a mistake and moving forward?
These are the kinds of questions I keep close to use as a gut-check when I want to be sure I’m moving in my best interest.
For paid subscribers, I go on to share more about confidence as something quantifiable, anchoring that in a personal experience that helped make this insight concrete for me. For just $5/month, you can get access!
Thank you to everyone reading this for being here with me as I grow! You can also support my work by liking, sharing, subscribing, or leaving a comment.
Until next time, Hunters! Stay confident.
Killer Instinct is a cultural dispatch on Black diasporic life and sharp media critique. I host a live Internet radio show called Killer Frequency every Friday at 1pm AST—join me. Support, subscribe, and stay sharp 🗡.
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