Dr. Aziz (speaker) explains that avoidance of feared actions magnifies fear and reduces one’s capacity to act. He advises building confidence by deliberately taking bold actions — or smaller, titrated steps if the full action feels overwhelming — and notes that acting boldly increases feelings of boldness and confidence.
If you know that you want to take more bold action, you want to build your confidence by approaching people or putting yourself out there in life. But then fear gets in the way, right? You hesitate. Maybe there's excuses in your mind, but you know that underneath the excuses, it's just. It's uncomfortable. Or I don't want to get rejected. I don't want to feel those feelings. Or I just can't do it, right? That kind of cringy, almost fragile version of ourselves that really feels like you can't handle it. Well, if you really want to build confidence, you have to realize that when we practice that avoidance, when we take things we're afraid of and we hold back, we actually magnify the fear and we, we our capacity to go in. We're like, we're waiting for it. Just feel more bold and confident. But it's actually put the other way around that when you take the step in with boldness, you get to feel more bold. And if it feels too overwhelming to do the big thing, then do a small thing. Titrate it down to what feels that you're able to do today. Lean in, take the bold action, and watch your confidence skyrocket.
