Confident

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Confident

I don’t want to be here. I don’t think I have the confidence for it. I didn’t want to come here, to confront this. You see, I don’t like crowds and I don’t like pressure; I avoid parties, can’t stand basketball games. I feel awkward here too; a touch of nausea, especially when I can’t think of anything good to say. I have no idea what I sound like. How can I be sure I’m not making a fool of myself?

They tell me occasionally that I’m not bad at speaking, but honestly I think I’m terrible. My mind rushes to bring the next words to my lips, and I pray that I don’t trip over the text -- butterflies flitter in my stomach. Sometimes while I’m speaking I ask myself “why am I here, in this situation, and why would on earth would I put myself in here,”(…) and I have no idea.

I do know, however, that I’m not alone. Everybody I’ve spoken to isn’t …confident…about himsel for herself in some important way. When it comes to speech, or to integrity or even to action, many people simply don’t believe in themselves -- and they’re pinned down by it.

Public speaking (shiver) -- That’s my demon. For a long time I was petrified by the mere thought. I envy people who can do this easily. Like this old friend I have who actually lives here; his name’s Camden. He’s really speech confident; he’s very articulate. He talks to people he doesn’t know without trouble, so much so that last time I visited him he walked up to strangers on the street and lectured them on quantum physics for fun. Much to my surprise, he kept his audience the majority of the time- despite their schedules, despite their appointments. He knows how to speak like an expert on almost anything, and it all comes from his strong confidence in his presentation skills. He’s not afraid to speak; he sounds like he has confidence in what he’s talking about, and it shows in his many victories in life.

Being articulate is an important part of your confidence because it’s how you show who you are. Without it you lack that essential ability to communicate your character to the rest of your world. Unfortunately, the person who has this power is somewhat rare.

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