Courage vs. Confidence


On most any list of admired or preferred personality traits you will find confidence. Why? Do you actually think that competence precedes confidence? Of course, we must start with definitions. Oxford for this one.

Confidence: a feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities

Right. Because that’s reliable. A feeling… One’s appreciation of one’s own abilities… You need not be a sage to recognize that plenty of people have unearned and unreasonable “confidence”. Every Washington, DC politician is confident. Yes, those intellectual giants. Every CEO that has ever run a business into the ground was confident. There seems to be no more important trait to instill in your children these days. Shouldn’t they actually do something first? Might confidence get in the way a bit? Might humility be preferable?

Epictetus, the slave who became a famed Stoic philosopher, said: “It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows”. If one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities gets in the way of one’s own learning, that’s a problem. If it gets in the way of one’s own clear-eyed and rational assessment of a situation, that’s a problem.  

Some form of the quote, “the more I learn, the more I don’t know”, is attributed to everyone from Einstein to Socrates to Plato… Why? Because these actual intellectual giants had an appreciation for how much they did not know.

Back to the definitions. Merriam-Webster this time.

Courage: mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty

Persevere and withstand fear. How beautiful is that? To simplify even further… being afraid and doing something anyway. That is much more impressive than confidence. In that fear, you find humility. And in humility, you find the willingness to accept that you don’t know it all. And then you are open to listening and learning and preparing.

Who would you rather join in battle… the courageous or the confident? And this life is a battle. A daily fight to be your best. Face it with courage.

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