living CONFIDENTLY and COURAGEOUSLY

Lots of words seem to start with c: confidence, courage, comparison, complaints, communication… The list goes on and on.

Confidence was not something I always struggled with, but it seems to be something I’m struggling with lately.

It turns out that confidence – a feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of own abilities or qualities – isn’t quite as easy as to achieve as the motivational quotes on Pinterest or and social media influencers seem to make it sound. So how exactly can we live confidently?

I’m hard on myself and there are times in my life where I can’t seem to live up to my standards or the standards other people set for me. There are days when it’s awfully hard for me to believe in myself because I don’t feel like anyone else believes in me.

In all honesty, there are days when I don’t wear makeup, so I wear my hair down and put my glasses on just to cover up the acne and imperfections of my face, which isn’t something I’m proud of, but it’s the truth.

There is no combination of 26 letters I could write telling you exactly how to live confidently, but I can try to tell you how to live courageously.

You see, confidence is just a feeling, but courage is the follow through. Often, when we say we don’t feel confident enough to do something, we’re really just saying I don’t think I could actually go through with that.

Confidence is a self-assurance that you won’t always have, but sometimes life is scary, and anything worth doing might scare you just a little bit, which is why we have to live courageously.

Courage is facing difficulty head on. Courage is what allows you to follow through not because you’re not afraid, but despite your fears.

What does it look like to live with courage and confidence? Get things done. As I’ve shared before, there are seven days in a week, and I hate to break it to you, but someday is not one of them. Face your fears, even if it’s absolutely terrifying. Be prepared, so you know what to expect, but be careful that you don’t know too much to the point where you’re even more afraid than when you started. Realize that even if it doesn’t work out perfectly, you will grow and learn, so that you are stronger when you try again.