Building Blocks of Success: Confidence & Self Esteem

BoldJourney is all about helping our audience and community level up by learning from the experiences of others. One of the most important topics we’ve been focused on sharing insights and lessons on is confidence building and self-esteem. Below, you’ll find some brilliant entrepreneurs and creatives sharing their perspectives and advice.

Vanesa Nicolosi

Honestly speaking, this is something I keep working on, daily. I’m much more confident than when I was a teenager but I fell it is a skill to keep developing and never stop working on in my case. I was always a very active child and my presence could be felt when I was around. However, I was quiet and shy when it came to communicating. Read more>>

Jessie Mignone

I took long-term classes on the business side, and then the Influencing side, of Instagram. Between that and hours of doing, observing, paying attention to inspiration-accounts and evolving, I have developed a strong knowledge I can use to give my clients quality product, and students, easy tips to make a big difference with their pages. Read more>>

Krishawn Crockett

When asked where my confidence and self esteem generates from, my answer is more of a “who” than a “where” . My confidence relies in Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ alone. In fact, it is Him who I trust to sustain me where I am more than I trust my own ability to do so. It is Him who qualified, equipped, and molded me into what I needed to be and will need to be to maintain what He’s called me to be. Read more>>

Trevaun Walker

How I developed my confidence and self-esteem. I had to be humble for sure. I knew I was going into something completely new. I took my time to learn as much as possible. I followed other people work. So, I could get to the point where I understand their process. Once I had my knowledge, I knew my uniqueness would stand out from any others work.  Read more>>

Sahil Juneja

I believe the root of my confidence is the knowledge I gained from my past experiences and education from two prestigious universities. When I look back, I also think , I always backed myself in whatsoever situation, it’s because I try and listen to my gut and then reason with it, but with that being said, I wasn’t always this confident.  Read more>>

Bryce Landers

I would say that a lot of my confidence and self-esteem have been fostered by other creatives within the Cincinnati community. I can honestly say that this is, hands down, the most supportive community I have been a part of. The transparency between other makers right off the bat with things I’m new to, whether it be social media, sourcing materials for products, etc., has been such an integral part of my continued growth. Read more>>

Oberon Zell

The key element is competence. Since my earliest days I have always been able to create anything I could envision–whether artwork (drawing, painting, sculpture), writing, construction or invention. Even complex organizations and systems–such as a church, religion, social movement, school, magazine… Even living Unicorns! Also I have generally been smarter than anyone else in the room. I have always known that I could do or create anything I set my mind to. So I have never lacked confidence and self-esteem. Read more>>

Morgan J

Tapping in to my main source, God. I can only be validated from the words of the one who created me, rather than the validation from others who are always ever-changing. So when I walk in a room, I’m not playing small knowing I have a big God who says I’m enough. Read more>>

Mary Balistreri

“You are dumb or fat or ugly or”…fill in the blank. The taunts and negative messages I heard as a child imbedded in my brain and reflected into my soul until they became my thoughts about myself. I know I am not alone in this. So many people struggle with negative self-talk. These mean-spirited attacks on yourself can become a spiral of thoughts that waste our energy and keep us from living a full life. Read more>>

Eleanor David

Feminine range. I began to truly develop confidence when i started to recognize the infinite expressions available to women. I realized how many judgments I held on certain embodiments and how I organized a hierarchy for what I deemed valuable and not. Read more>>

Chelsea Ravansari

I realized that the more time I spent working on my self-care habits (like reprogramming my mindset & regulating my nervous system), the more efficient & effortless life became. By incorporating real intentional self-care habits that nourished my spiritual growth, soul, and body, I improved my self-confidence and became more resilient to life’s challenges. Read more>>

Chelsie Martinez

Man in today’s world holding on to confidence and self-esteem is so hard! But I have always leaned on a bible verse found in Psalms 139:14 that talks about how we are “Fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Call me basic cause I got that tattooed on me too! lol) But I always think about this when I have moments when I doubt myself, my job, my looks, oh the spiral we can get caught in.  Read more>>

Nicole Green

My Mom was a great role model. She was a working professional and a mom. She taught me that I can have it all. She taught me how to present myself- not so much in a makeup and done up way, but things that were 100% in my control like smiling and making eye contact when I spoke to someone.  Read more>>

Mariel Mendez

I work every day to develop myself and develop my confidence in life. In any situation, I think it is important to pay attention to who you are and your philosophy. It took me a lot of work to have confidence in my work. More than in myself, the difficult thing is believing yourself worthy, believing that your work has value and that your time is even valuable and complements the development of confidence and self-esteem. Read more>>

Mercedes Douglas

The number one way I develop my self-esteem and confidence is by going to the gym consistently and watching my nutrition. I have noticed that when I look better I usually feel better about myself inside and out. I also like to write in my journal and leave encouraging notes sitting around. From time to time I like to write positive affirmations on sticky notes and stick them to a mirror I use so I can see them everyday. Read more>>

Tanya Spencer

I was about 1.5 years old when my bio-father tried to kill me. Threw me out of the window in a rage that he should pay for his corruption. He was a cop arrested by his peers. The trauma wreaked havoc on my body and I still suffer from that. But it also gave me a steely determination to live, to fight back against injustices, and to be confident that I will survive just about anything. Read more>>

Rudy Zamora

I developed my confidence by focusing on myself. This is something I battled with for quite sometime and it was not an easy road for me. I would always wonder if my work is good enough or comparing myself to others in my field. Overtime, this kind of mindset would bother me. I decided that I needed to change this and started focusing on myself.  Read more>>

Cyrus Ausar

I cultivated my self-confidence and self-esteem by embodying selflessness. I firmly believe I’m merely an instrument for carrying out divine purposes. Recognizing that I’m serving a higher power, neither praise nor criticism significantly impacts me. Read more>>

Tara LaFon Gooch

From a young age, I grappled with feelings of inadequacy and unworthiness. Every setback, every criticism, seemed to reinforce the belief that I wasn’t good enough. Each passing year only served to deepen this conviction, eroding whatever amount of confidence I managed to muster.  Read more>>

Kirsten Barfoot

Confidence and self-esteem weren’t natural traits for me; I’ve had to nurture them over time. I recall a general manager advising me once that I simply needed more confidence. While this was well-intentioned, his counsel fell short in facilitating more confidence. Read more>>

Manuel Zopiyaxtle

I always say that you have got to be your number one supporter. I truly think that there is no one that will love you and push you more than you can love and push yourself. Confidence and self-esteem are two tools that are a must have in this industry. I think that this industry that I work in is one that can really bring the best in you, but it can also bring the worst, and you have got to be prepared for whatever is there for you.  Read more>>

Sharmika Gray (Meeks)

In my 20’s, I lacked confidence in myself very much and the crazy thing is I was very much in shape. But the thing is, I needed validation, Validation is extremely toxic but I didn’t realized it. I needed to be told I was beautiful at all times because if you said it a million times then I probably would start believing it and that’s the main reason why I went into modeling. After becoming a mom, I went from 120 to 175 pounds. Read more>>

Alex Dale

I have developed my confidence by continuing to put myself in situations where I am out of my comfort zone. I’ve recently joined networking groups in my area that are focused on elevating women and minority owned small business. I really enjoy learning about people and their differences in perspective, without focusing so much on negligible things like income level and job titles. Read more>>

Chris Hughes II

All my life I have been different from others. Large, Tall, Black, Speak with manners, Soft spoken, Self aware and Patience. My confidence stems from within, I’m not sure it’s from Will Power or me simply knowing I can bring change to the world with my Talents. Wether I’m doing voice over work using different voices, or giving some of the best advice I didn’t know I could give. I know who I am and I know who I want to be in this world, and nobody will change that for me. Read more>>

Cameron Newson

The journey toward developing confidence and self-esteem is often a gradual process, characterized by a series of small victories that eventually lead to significant achievements. In my own experience, overcoming doubts and disproving skeptics has played a crucial role in shaping my self-belief. Read more>>

Michael Barth

A lot of my confidence today comes from my expertise/knowledge in my craft and knowing I’ve put in the time and work to become who I am. Growing up, wrestling and football were my sports of choice so confidence was necessary. I had my fair share of altercations as a teenager as well which only helped confidence become arrogance. Read more>>

Andrea Wiggins

I feel like the journey of greater confidence and self-esteem is one that is constantly evolving. When I look at how far I have come in my 10 years of entrepreneurship, I realize that these qualities were being developed long before this journey started. Read more>>

Abhash Singh

In short- by doing what I love to do the most. When I joined college, all starry-eyed and wanting to write for films, I had no idea the level of competition I was about to face. Almost everyone was better equipped, better prepared and vastly more knowledgeable about the various aspects involved in the making of a film.  Read more>>

Wakiekie Reid

I developed my confidence from my parents, my siblings, my neighbors, and those who saw potential and growth and beauty in me even before I could see those things in me.. Read more>>

Nikhaule Martin

Starting from a young age, I was lucky to have a family that made a conscious effort to expose me to media that reflected my identity. I had dolls that looked like me and access to diverse content featuring individuals from backgrounds similar to mine. Being an only child gave me plenty of time to explore my interests and hobbies, which really helped me figure out who I am. Of course, it hasn’t always been easy.  Read more>>

Theresasucks

I developed my confidence and sense of self-esteem by embracing and accepting myself entirely. For the longest time, I thought once I had obtained certain skills, qualities, or accomplishments then I could allow myself to feel good about who I was. The reality for me is that confidence is 100% attitude and deciding to accept yourself as you are and embracing that fully.  Read more>>

Irina Solinas

Good question! I think it is the most important internal battle for an artist to face: to be recognized and thus recognize yourself as an artist, or to convince the audience because one has painstakingly built up a self-conviction? To each his own path, I don’t think there is a right or a wrong one. Read more>>

Maura Allard

I was raised by a father who grew up during the depression, and a mother who was mentally ill. Neither of them knew how to foster self worth or self confidence. It was not their fault, no one ever fostered it in them either. My journey to developing self worth and confidence has been a long, profound and often beautiful journey. Read more>>

Shannon Carriere

Although I had some surface confidence when I was younger, as I leaned into my stable career and raising a family, I fell into complacency. I was going through the motions. When I started to think more seriously about running my own business, I realized there was some missing faith in myself, because- what have I REALLY done these past 15 years? Was it special at all? Do I even belong? These questions prevented me from putting myself out there and taking risks. Read more>>

Ekep Nkwelle

Many factors in my journey have contributed to my confidence level. For instance, I was born in Washington, DC in 1999, and my family lived on Georgia Avenue until we moved to Prince George’s County, which at the time was the wealthiest Black county in the US. Living in PG shaped my worldview. Read more>>  

Fergus King

I was clever when I was a kid, and I was good at school. Those things rarely translate to confidence these days, but I believe they were necessary building blocks for me to gain confidence from my parent’s divorce, rather than lose it. Read more>>

Anna Ivanova

In my journey as a portrait photographer in the creative field, I’ve worked on boosting my confidence and self-esteem through various means. First off, I got a diploma in photography, which gave me a good starting point. But I didn’t stop there. I’ve taken extra courses with experienced photographers who gave me feedback on my work. Their advice helped me get better at what I do. Read more>>