Confidence

A couple of things occur to me as I review my teenage and young adult years.

When I was a teenager, I played softball for my church team. It happens that I was a talented softball player - and whenever I was on the softball field I was a different person because I was confident in my ability to play the game. My confidence was fed of course by the people around me who noticed and complimented my talents - my coaches, teammates, other parents, even other coaches from opposing teams would compliment me. It felt good to feel important as a person. I felt FREE. I played as often as I could on a couple of different teams.

I experienced that same sense of confidence when I went to work after graduation from high school. I was a quick learner and a hard worker. I was willing to put in as many hours as needed to get the job done. I quickly became the 'go to' person in the office when extra help was needed by the owners and managers.

For whatever reason, that confidence never spilled over into my personal life - it always stayed contained to specific situations. But since my work took up a big chunk of my day, I guess it was just what I needed to keep me going.

It occurs to me now, that I do well with encouragement. If somebody else shows a little faith in me, I can usually respond. But I seem to need that little nudge, that little boost of confidence.