Minding Gaps and Building Bridges

We have a problem that cripples, we're scared to achieve
We get shown the way but too scared to believe

I spent a lot of time around people from a wide variety of backgrounds.  Generally, I can tell the hustle from the core beliefs and know how to probe in just the right ways to flush out cognitive dissonance in a conversation.  Like many, I've gotten pretty decent at telling when the swagger is faked or forced.

What I find, then, is that Jaydahmann hits it on the head.  We all know that confidence matters.  Some are better at faking it than others.  Some feel they have a confident shtick they can pull, others constantly doubt they come across as tough enough - many feel constrained because that art of laying on charm, talking sweet but with edge isn't in their toolkit.

We do a lot of telling people they have to have confidence, they gotta dig down and find it, take some bashes along the way and only then will they be able to stand their ground.

It's not the right approach.  Confidence can and should be nurtured along with every other social skill; discipline, punctuality, listening when someone else is speaking.  These aren't innate abilities, they are learned.

Do we have enough positive opportunities for all of our youth to confidently pursue their dreams, based on confident collections of experience and knowledge?

Can we do better?

What would a space and a program that works like this look like?

I do believe we'll be finding out soon enough.