1-2-3 Inner Game

The most confident person in the room

Listen to the audio format of this issue

Was this newsletter forwarded to you?

Last week I watched someone I think of as the poster child of confidence show up in a way I did not expect.

This is a person who walks into a room and fills it.

Certain, capable, the last one you would ever worry about.

And there they were, being honest about a fear that sits underneath all of it.

Whether they can provide.

It stayed with me all week, because I saw versions of the same thing in two strategy sessions with two very different teams.

The strongest people in the room, the ones everyone leans on, quietly admitting what they carry.

One leader talked about the weight on her shoulders and how she has only recently started sharing it.

Another cried while describing a fear she had spent years hiding in a previous role.

These are not weak people.

They are the engine of their businesses.

And the moment they let the armor slip was the moment the whole room moved.

We have the story backwards.

We treat confidence and vulnerability as opposites, as if admitting fear is what confident people manage to avoid.

It's the reverse.

The most confident thing a person can do is say the thing they are afraid to say, out loud, in front of people whose respect they want to keep.

That takes more nerve than any amount of certainty.

I felt it myself this week.

The times I let my own guard down landed harder than anything polished I could have performed.

Vulnerability is not the absence of strength.

It is strength with nothing left to hide behind.

Here are some Inner Game perspectives to consider this week.

❓ 1 Question from Me

You have two types of people in your life.

The first are people who are driving you forward, people you are learning and growing from. The second are those who are holding you back.

How many people in your circle are driving you forward?

💬 2 Quotes

1. "Life is a dance between making it happen and letting it happen." Arianna Huffington

2. "Coaching is a seduction into a possibility." Benjamin Zander

🧠 3 Insights from Me

1. Having a friendly demeanor and a positive outlook can increase your chances of success. Opportunities often arise through connections, and people are more likely to share opportunities with those they find agreeable. It is difficult to thrive if your attitude causes tension in your interactions with others.

   
   

2. Three simple ways to get more of what you want in life: be kind and approachable to others, ask for what you want, and follow up.

   
   

3. It is wiser to be alone than to surround yourself with negative influences. It is more worthwhile to do nothing than to invest time in something meaningless. It is better to rest than to climb the wrong mountain.

If you're an entrepreneur, or know one who would benefit from creating clarity, aligning their team, building momentum, and growing their business with the Bloom Growth system, I'd love to connect.

Until next week:

Certainty performs.

Vulnerability connects.

Say the thing you are afraid to say.

— Dhiren