Perspectives on Developing Confidence

It’s okay to be scared, often that’s a sign that you are pushing yourself towards greatness. However, it’s equally important to build up your confidence and we hope the conversations presented below can help provide some food for thought around how you can level up your confidence and self-esteem.

Samantha Buck

Other people thought I was confident long before I felt it for myself. I can remember wanting to be seen as strong, fearless, and confident from when I was very young – but it came from a place of feeling like I needed to prove myself. Read more>>

Valerie Keiner

Confidence and good self-esteem are hard ones for me. I haven’t always had them and I still struggle with it, as most people do. Having confidence is such a mental game. What helps me stay confident on a day-to-day basis is remembering and knowing that I am loved by many people that don’t care what I do or say. Knowing I have a great support system helps me have confidence when meeting new people and growing in my career. Read more>>

Nicola Vitkovich

My path to confidence and positive self-esteem has been a real journey. As a child I was bullied, at times violently. At home my parents fought a lot and for some reason I always felt it was my fault. Today I understand it wasn’t about me, my mom and dad had their own challenges. Read more>>

Dylan Dahle

As an up-and-coming real estate agent with nothing but the tools at my feet, my journey towards developing confidence and self-esteem has been a transformational odyssey. Growing up, I was incredibly shy, often retreating into the safety of the sidelines rather than stepping into the spotlight. My self-doubt and fear of judgment held me back from embracing opportunities and expressing my true potential. Read more>>

James Wodarek

I developed self-confidence by embracing my authentic self. When you discover your authentic self, everything else becomes easy. You know, embracing who you truly are—it’s like embarking on a journey that boosts your confidence and makes you genuinely feel good about yourself. When you’re authentic, not trying to fit into a mold or pretend to be someone you’re not, it’s as if a weight is lifted off your shoulders.  Read more>>

Shari Gullo

Harrison Ford once said that at one point as a young man he promised himself an interesting life. As I became older I realized all that I hoped to do “someday” would remain unrealized unless I finally started. I didn’t have more confidence or self-esteem than I had earlier. I did have a dissatisfaction that made staying the same untenable.  Read more>>

Lisa Caldwell

I think my self-esteem came from doing. I have always been very active, energetic and curious. As a young girl, I spied big blackberries on the otherside of the fence running along the highway. I love to eat and I really loved blackberries, so I excitedly climbed over the fence with the intention to bring some back home with me. Read more>>

Aria Thome

I developed my confidence and self-esteem in sound healing by following intuition. You could also call in Spirit/Divine/Universal Consciousness. Either way, when I followed those mystical nudges, I found the words I spoke, the instruments I played, and the order I played those instruments in always tended to flow so smoothly.  Read more>>

Reven Marie Swanson

I am completely confidence and maintain perfect self-esteem. Well… that’s a pack of lies. It’s impossible to embody the sensitivities of an artist and maintain a steady flow of confidence. It’s part of our nature to challenge, explore, observe and sometimes experience things backwards. We all understand the dark forces of the inner critic. The more we tell the inner critic to quiet, the more it rages at 2:00am in the early mornings. Read more>>

Nicholas Evanko

I don’t know that I have ever been an overly confident person. I know growing up, I struggled with shyness, and I think overall I’m a pretty introverted person. This is probably why Jada and I work well together as she is a bit more outgoing. Honestly, her support, along side the support of my family, and that of the friends i’ve been fortunate enough to make, are a big reason why I have confidence in myself and in our business. Without them none of this would have come together. Read more>>

Devereaux Banx

I grew up with a beautiful mother that always supported me and poured so much love into me. She raised me to believe in myself, to believe that I could do anything my heart desires. Over time I took chances on myself in areas that I had always wanted to explore and achieve, and makeup was one of those things. Read more>>

Stefany Hernandez

Most of my life (until my late 20’s and early 30’s), I was affected by cultural trauma. Constant comments about my fluctuating weight from family members and friends. I vividly remember how insecure I was during my middle and high school years (so insecure that I dreaded walking across the street on busy crosswalks). It terrified me because I knew that there was someone staring and judging my appearance. Read more>>

Latoya Brown-Clayton

I developed my confidence and self-esteem through years of small, consistent doses of self-love and utilizing my own inner light. To me, confidence means feeling assurance in yourself and your capabilities — not in a pretentious manner, but in a realistic, secure way. Confidence is not about feeling superior to other people. It is a quiet inner knowledge that you are capable. Confident people feel secure rather than insecure. Read more>>

Labeaud Colbert

Developing my self-esteem started with writing down six of my biggest problems at the time. I was twenty years old, a mom of two under two and felt like I had no options in life. I was seeing a Psychologist, Dr. Pat Brown of Tampa, Fl. I have to give her credit for being the first person to teach me that I could control my reality one step at a time and it began with simply putting things down on paper. Read more>>

Lady Syren

I personally feel like confidence wasn’t “lovingly” bestowed upon me in traditional sense. Or by way of nurture. It was very much something I had to borrow or steal bits and pieces of when no one was watching. Especially having learned so harshly and often, that catching the attention of the wrong people yielded detrimental results to my psyche.  Read more>>

Daisi Pollard Sepulveda

I can’t take all the credit for my confidence and self-esteem, some scientific research believes that an estimated 50% of self-confidence is genetic. However, when I was very young my mother used to teach me about having self-confidence by encouraging me to learn to be independent, to express myself properly, and not to be intimidated or afraid of people.  Read more>>

Marcel Andre

Alright, so my journey to becoming a confident fashionista is a wild ride. Back in Luxembourg, it was all about people looking chic, but confidence? Not so much. Except for those fabulous older ladies rocking mink fur coats and designer bags like they were born with them. Read more>>

Adrienne van der Valk

When drinking is your primary identity, it’s pretty hard to generate much self-esteem. This was my reality for about ten years: I knew I had a problem with alcohol but I had no faith or confidence in my ability to live without it. Read more>>

Emma Bryan

When I was 14, I was watching the popular tv series America’s Next Top Model. As I watched these incredible models work and create, the thought “I could do that” popped into my head. Almost immediately, I shut it down. I could never do something like that? What am I thinking? You’re not pretty enough? Read more>>

Chelsea Elizabeth

Something people have always told me—most often in complementary fashion—is that I’m a confident person. And I am. But before I talk about where this comes from, I want to discuss what confidence even means to me. Read more>>

Tara Jaye Frank

If I’m honest, I spent much of my young adult life searching for the ease that confidence and self-esteem are supposed to bring. As a child, I was shy and awkward. I had a small circle of friends who lived in my neighborhood and parents who thought I hung the moon, but I was not popular.  Read more>>

Connor Hiebel

Something many people don’t know about me is that my journey with self-confidence has been a bumpy one. As a 7 year old, my self worth was incredibly low. I had undiagnosed health and learning challenges which my teachers didn’t understand or accommodate for. Because I tested above grade level, I slipped through the cracks.  Read more>>

Katrinia Freeman

It took a lot of work. I had to learn how to love myself from the inside out. Once I truly understood the definition of loving myself unconditionally, that’s when I became a force. Being a full figure woman sometimes it can become frustrating when people only see my size.  Read more>>

Marc Killian

I think we all suffer from low self-esteem at various times in life and of course some more than others. So for me early on I noticed I was shy or subdued around people or in situations unless it involved music. So it helped me quickly learn my strength or personal power could be unlocked by making music the forefront of my life. Read more>>

Carmen Blyden

I developed my confidence and self-esteem by taking a simple yet powerful step: saying YES to myself. For too long, I prioritized the needs of others over my own. I allowed external opinions to overshadow my self-perception and influence my choices. While struggling with my mental health, I realized it was time for a change, a change that required me to put my own needs, aspirations and desires first. Read more>>

Confidence and self-esteem are continually developing – I think it’s an ongoing journey. There are certainly times when self-doubt and insecurity have a party at my expense. When that happens, I look for examples of ways that I’ve grown and challenges that I’ve overcome. Sometimes we forget the things we’ve accomplished, what we’re capable of, and how far we’ve already come.  Read more>>

Mitchell Bienvenue

You know, confidence for me wasn’t something that just happened overnight. As a kid, I was actually quite the opposite – I was pretty scared of failing at anything I did. It’s funny, looking back, I think that fear is what initially pushed me to excel in academics from a young age. I wanted to prove to myself that I could succeed. Read more>>

Helen M Ippolito

I was very shy all through grade school and into high school. about that time I found myself in Home economics sewing class, where our project was to purchase fabric (mother helped) I chose a pattern and cut a two piece outfit; a weskit (vest) and a line skirt.  Read more>>

Faith Barker

I developed my confidence first by learning to believe in myself and know my worth. I also surround myself with family and friends who encourage and support me. Your circle of friends matters. If you surround yourself with people who lift you up and want to see you succeed then you will be able to do more. Read more>>

Paiglyn Perez

Growing up, I did not recognize the importance of the perception of yourself. Concerned with other people’s perspective of me, I was plagued with the cycle of degrading thoughts of not ever being enough. I was not aware of the dangerous thought pattern I was in and it lead to a very unhappy life. Read more>>

Tara Brooks

I developed my confidence & self esteem after years of hard work on my craft, adapting to new environments, overcoming challenges, & the daily practice of believing in yourself. Confidence & self esteem have the ability to show up strong & powerfully, but doesn’t mean you won’t have days of feeling fragile or timid. Read more>>

Ryan Lill-Washington

I think a lot of my self-confidence came from the onslaught of stranger’s opinions of who I was. When I came out, I had the entire online world watching me release my first album. Everyone had an opinion, and all of them were about me – a human being they only knew from small square-shaped photographs online. Read more>>

Jakeya Limitless

Developing confidence and a profound sense of self-esteem has been an exhilarating journey for me, rooted in embracing risks and pushing the boundaries of my comfort zone. As a versatile artist navigating the realms of vocal performance, coaching, and live entertainment, I’ve learned that courage is indeed a superpower that propels me forward. Embracing risk-taking has become one of my most potent tools on this path to self-assurance. Read more>>

Deron Johnson

For me, the magic gaining in self esteem and confidence lies in showing up in any situation and doing the best that you can at the time. Failing and overcoming brings confidence! Never quitting or getting too attached to the outcome will bring an inner confidence to just keep going. Of course, having great people around you that respect you and help nurture you is key as well. Read more>>