The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Boosting people's confidence

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 11, 2006

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Boosting people's confidence

Special Correspondent

Therapists say many persons with low confidence are carrying with them `emotional baggage' of the past

Bangalore: International diplomatic missions talk about "confidence building" exercises. In the corporate world, mentors of new recruits often have to go with this exercise. Because, many otherwise skilled young people are lacking in self-confidence and are unable to reach their full potential.

In extreme cases, psychiatric counselling becomes necessary, some senior managers admit. The aim is to turn shy loners into persons who can interact more freely with others and work better as a team.

Many persons with low confidence are carrying with them "emotional baggage" of the past, therapists say. Suppose, you were compared adversely with a sibling or told repeatedly by teachers in school and college you could never be above average. Over the years, these negative perceptions cloud your self-image. You are by now convinced you can only be average or less. Never really shine in your career or make it big.

It often turns into a cycle of negativity: people do not interact with those who could have a more positive influence on them and never speak up at meetings or express their ideas to superiors for fear of being snubbed. It is often not necessary to go through all this.

Along with therapy, psychiatrists ask such persons to write down a list of their positive aspects. "Able to sing fairly well; can interpret numerical data; can draft reports which are easily readable; possess good computer skills' and so on." Often enough this list reveals that a person has long ago stopped being mediocre and has acquired some very useful job skills that are needed by his or her organisation. Skills they are diffident to show or talk about.

The team leader or manager has an important role in this context. They have to make the shy and withdrawn person feel at ease, draw them out, encourage them and boost their confidence with encouraging remarks. Managers don't find this very difficult once they realise the hidden potential in the more withdrawn type of staffers. The rewards are often great, many managers say because they now know the persons they can entrust with more serious work.

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