How Self-Esteem Impacts Our Confidence Levels
Our belief in self has a profound effect on our confidence and on the quality of both our lives and business. Today our focus is on business. If person A believes that he lacks the basic skills to solve problems, ex. marketing, networking, sales, etc. then he may lose heart and give up. In contrast, person B, who may have less ability yet strong self belief, stands a much better chance of being successful. This is because his belief in self gives him the confidence to try and try harder again.
Think back to high school or college. Have you ever wondered why only a few students in a class asked questions? Could it be because the remaining students understood all of the critical points made during the lecture? Or is it because they lack the confidence to ask a question? More often than not, it is the fear that stops students from asking questions. In other words, they lack self-confidence. The only way this confidence can improve is when they start believing in themselves.
This is why belief in self is so important, especially in business. It gives an individual the confidence they need to shoot for the stars. It overwhelms negative thoughts, and drives away the fear of failure. It is the best antidote against lashing out at yourself, which can turn several talented persons into under-achievers. It gives business owners the confidence that they have nothing to loose. On the contrary, they realize that they have everything to gain by asking a question, even if it happens to be a silly one.
Abraham Lincoln is a fine example of a man who believed in himself. He lost every election until he went to the Senate and stood for the post of the President. He did not allow his failures in professional and personal life to erode his self-belief. Had he done so, the history of the US would have been different.
Belief in self gives us the confidence to accept failure. It teaches us the importance of positive thinking. Those who have high self-esteem don’t talk about failures; instead, they try to find out why they did not succeed. They look for lessons that can be learnt from their experience. This is not a simple issue of semantics. It is the power of positive thinking, and it is available to only those who have self-esteem.
Once again it is self-esteem that gives us the confidence to enter a new group, and become a part of it. Those who lack self-esteem are very reluctant to approach a new group. They don’t want to expose themselves to the ridicule of being seen as shy, nervous or ignorant. They would instead prefer to stay in their corners.
In fact, lack of self-esteem stands out like a sore thumb at parties, meetings, conferences and social or official functions. Individuals with low self-esteem avoid introducing themselves to others. They prefer to stay in the shadows, away from the sights of others. However, their colleagues who enjoy high self-esteem dominate the discussions. They are sought after by others for information. They are also invited to other meetings and parties — all because their self-esteem gives them the confidence to open up before a group of strangers. It is the same student syndrome that is reflected in an individual’s working life too.
Lack of self-esteem is one of the greatest myths of introversion. Typically the business owner will blame their introverted personality on the fact that they just “can’t get out there.” This couldn’t be further from the truth. Introversion is just that, a personality trait. It is not the deciding factor in who we are and what we offer the world. If this describes you, then you most definitely need a self-confidence boost.
Nothing will change in your business life until you have self-respect, and the self-belief that you are as good as others. You must realize that you are not the only one who has strong and weak points; others too suffer from the same defects. The only difference is that the others project their strong points whereas you may project your weak points. All that you need to do is refocus your priorities. If you do this, you will find the elusive self-confidence.
Are you struggling with self-confidence or introversion issues in your VA business? Is your business where you always dreamt it would be? If your VA business is suffering in any way, we are here to help you make it into the “im-possible” dream. The Virtual Assistant Revolution is just that a REVOLUTION. We want to help you change the way you think about yourself and your business. Our goal is to show you that there is more to the current state of your VA business. If you want to introduce a new product, gain the skills to offer a new service or if you want that six-figure VA business, it’s yours for the taking and we want to give you the tools to make it happen.
The important role of follow up
For my contribution for the Revolutionary blog, I would like to include an excerpt from my book, The Art of Follow Up.
I honestly don’t believe I would have a full roster of clients if it weren’t for diligent follow up with all of my leads.
It’s not as intimidating as it may seem, trust me. If I can do it, you can do it.
You own a Virtual Assistant business. You are the Commander in Chief, CEO, Director of Sales and Marketing, Receptionist and most likely Maintenance crew, among other things. If you don’t follow up with your potential clients, who will? Your competitors will!
After you’ve sent a targeted mailing, do you sit back and wait for the phone to ring? I sincerely hope not. You must be proactive. You might be lucky and receive a couple of phone calls, but don’t hold your breath. Whether you are targeting successful coaches or top producing real estate agents, chances are you selected your target market because they are busy people. Busy people tend to let their mail sit for a long time, especially if they don’t know who it came from. Perhaps your letter was opened and well received by the reader, but then got stuck in the glove box or tossed into the recycling bin.
You must make another contact with each and every recipient of that letter. A dozen of those letters could be sitting on desks or thumb tacked on bulletin boards while their readers wait for a free moment to contact you. What if that moment never comes and your potential client keeps getting busier and busier? They could really use your services and are likely to hire you, if you follow up with them.
You have probably found yourself in a similar situation. Think about it. The most recent example in my own life was a couple of months ago. I received a letter in the mail from a company offering credit card merchant accounts to new businesses. I thought it was interesting and set it aside. I had been too busy to call him. If he had called me back or sent me more information, I might have obtained his services or at the very least spread the word to my business contacts.
Rule # 1:
Never leave it up to your potential client to contact you.
Say it aloud, memorize it and repeat it. If you leave it up to a potential client to call you, you are taking quite a risk. All it takes is another letter, a postcard or a simple phone call. You must understand how important it is to stay in touch with potential clients.
-
Please Join Us...
-
Revolutionary Products
