There is a huge focus in the coaching and self-development industry around a “success mindset”.  It’s hard to stay confident all the time, especially when you’re dealing with something new or have recently had a personal setback.

I personally have struggled with wavering self-doubt which would come upon me just as a project or task was just about to be successful.  Once I saw this issue as a challenge I was here to overcome, I stopped letting it stop me. I started to be much more aware of when it was happening and created strategies to overcome this hurdle to stay focused on my goals.

I am still testing and refining the strategies personally and with my clients. And, I still struggle and get caught up in the emotional lows but now never for more than a day or two.  So, if you are like me and my clients, and your analytical brain is too strong to be tricked by some of the pop-culture tips such as the 5-second rule, then what I have learned can help you challenge self-doubt.

1) Get some perspective.

If a client comes to me over and over about lack of confidence with a task, I ask them to create a success file (it can be paper or digital). Inside it, I ask them to place items of past successes. This can include documents of past courses completed, designations obtained, testimonials from past clients, thank you letters or cards from family and friends, positive job reviews, reminders of creative projects you completed (a big picture of your beautiful home or gardens you designed). Anything that reminds you of places you have already had accomplishment.

When they hit that self-judgment wall, which is a fast-moving train of negative self-talk, I ask them to stop that train by reviewing their file. I ask them to remember and acknowledge all they have already accomplished. And I mean really feel the accomplishment. Focus on the papers or screen and really appreciate the focus, skill, and determination that you know you had to expend to accomplish that…and remind yourself that you can do it again.

2) Test your beliefs

I was working with a client that had significant doubt about the quality of her work as she like many people suffer from perfectionism in the workplace. She would double, triple check her accounting files before she sent them to the partner for review. The lack of confidence in her work was causing her to stay late in the office affecting her work/life balance. And the extra time was causing her to look unproductive if she didn’t bill it to the file or created unbillable hours for the firm if her time on the file was over-budget. I asked her to think about what the partner wanted. She said he/she would want a quality file that was within budget.

I asked her to test the quality of her file. I had her select two files to hand in over the next week where she would not go back and recheck her work before handing it in. Once those files were reviewed I asked her what the results were. In both cases, there was only one query on the file and neither were items that her double checking would have found.

So we tested her belief that double checking was improving the file and we proved that it wasn’t. She has now been able to move forward with this new belief, be more productive at work and keep within future job budgets much more easily.  I have even heard back from her employer how happy they are with her improved productivity.

So if you have beliefs that are not working for you, go out and test them. There is nothing like experiential evidence to help you change a belief.

3) Get some support

If you have tried the above several times and are still struggling with the self-doubt around a task then it may be time to get some support. It is best to deal with someone that has experience in the area you are struggling with, is positive and has proven skills to help you. Maybe it’s a positive friend or colleague who can hold you accountable.  I have found that friends and colleagues usually let friends/co-workers off the hook buying into the story of “why it wasn’t possible again”.  Instead, I would look to a coach or mentor that has a proven track record in helping others with their self-doubt issues.

These are just 3 of the 10 strategies that I have for helping professionals and business owners overcome self-doubt.  If you would like the complete list of 10 strategies along with some of the reasons “why” it can be challenging to overcome self-doubt then download the complete article called “Overcoming Self-Doubt: When the 5-Second Rule Doesn’t Work for You” on my Resources/Tools page

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Sometimes even the strongest person needs support to move forward on something they don’t feel confident about. And for those of you that suffer from overwhelming self-doubt, know my clients started out feeling that way too.  But by working with me and practiced these strategies (and others created just for their situation) they overcame their doubt.  If self-doubt is stopping you from reaching your business or personal goals then email me at anita@professionalcoachingcompany.com  for a complimentary clarity session.

Want to know more about the complimentary clarity session first and/or book your appointment online then go to http://professionalcoachingcompany.com/clarity-session/