Let’s build a culture of confidence together
By: Christi Krautbauer
Take a moment and picture the most confident person you know.
What makes you select that person? What causes you to identify them as being confident?
A lot of times when I ask this question, people share that they picture their boss, or their boss’s boss, or maybe a political figure. Too often we associate positional power with confidence. And that can make hard, especially for women who are earlier in their careers, to feel confident in their own right.
Almost every study that has looked at confidence has found a profound gap between men and women’s average confidence levels. And research consistently demonstrates that, for women in particular, confidence takes time to build. In fact, it can take decades for women’s confidence to the level of our male counterparts – decades during which early leadership roles, high visibility projects, and opportunities for sponsorship often depend on a person’s willingness to put their hand up and take risks. Lack of confidence plays a key role in the gap between men and women’s early career progression, and that gap just widens as we look at more senior roles.
The good news is that researchers have also demonstrated tangible ways that we can all can increase our confidence:
1. Redefine confidence with a neutral connotation. My favorite definition of confidence comes from Dr. Richard Petty at the University of Ohio State: Confidence is the stuff that turns our ideas into action. This definition removes any negative biases about confidence and allows everyone to embrace their confident side.
2. Capture the wins. Success begets confidence. By tracking your “wins” (even the ones that seem small), you can gradually increase your confidence that you will be successful in taking on bigger tasks.
3. Create an environment of action. Often, women don’t put their hand up for high visibility projects or promotions unless they feel 100% sure they will succeed. As leaders, we can create an environment where that’s not an option. We can require each other to try, and in doing so create opportunities for success (which in turn will generate additional confidence).
About the Author
Christi Krautbauer is an entrepreneur, mom, and women's leadership expert. She has delivered workshops at Grace Hopper, The Conference Board's Women's Leadership Conference, NAFE Twin Cities Summit and Aspire to Lead to name a few. In August 2021, Christi left the corporate world to lead Marketing Essentials. She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and their three children. Christi also chairs the board of directors for the Diaper Bank of Minnesota.
I am very excited to be bringing a workshop called Closing the Confidence Gap to the 2022 Women’s Leadership Conference. We’ll be exploring research on how each of us can be authentically confident, and how we can support the women around us to go forward with confidence too. I can’t wait to see you there!
