We tend to find what we’re looking for.

A google search for “trust yourself” returns an avalanche of advice extolling the life-changing virtues of unconditional self-trust.

However, a google search for “overconfidence” returns countless cautionary tales of how our cognitive biases are marching us blissfully to our doom.

So which is it? Do I trust myself no matter what or give in to all my insecurities? How do we navigate this sea of mixed messages?

Here are a few concepts from Organizational Psychologist Adam Grant’s research into Overconfidence Cycles. If you don’t trust yourself enough, these principles will guide you toward trusting yourself wisely; if you trust yourself too much, they should pull you back to a prudent level of self-trust.

• Test your Assumptions. Don’t just go with your gut, but don’t just ignore your gut either. Test your intuition, your opinions, your crazy ideas. Ask yourself, “what evidence would change my mind on this?” Then run a quick experiment based on your answer.
• Get some Perspective. You’re way too close to yourself to get an accurate view of all of you. Ask for feedback from others. Find people who love you enough to tell you the truth. Thank everyone who responds, but remember not all feedback is created equal. Look for trends and choose what you’ll use and what you’ll discard.
• Reframe Being Wrong. Being right is overrated and distracting. Fact: You are wrong about some things. So am I. Expect it. Embrace it. Enjoy it. That’s what Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman does. When he discovers some aspect of his research or thinking is wrong, he’s joyful—because he now knows he’s less wrong than before.

Learning to trust yourself well is critical to attracting trust from others. It’s hard to convince someone you’re a good investment for their trust, when you aren’t demonstrating a wise level of trust in yourself.

For Reflection: How will you ensure you’re trusting yourself wisely today?

Update: 64% Proposal Complete

With over 60,000 words written, I’m currently focusing on putting my book proposal together. I worked on the Market and Content areas of the proposal this week to move the needle 5% toward completion.

6/10 Content (10%)

9/10 Market (10%)

4/5 Author (5%)

15/25 Synopsis (25%)

30/50 Sample Chapters (50%)

64/100 Total (100%)