There are two types of confident people: the unassuming, amazing individual who is quietly incredible and the self-absorbed douche who thinks his shit don't stink. Unfortunately, most "confident" people you come across are the latter.
According to this post by Hubspot founder Dharmesh Shah, here are just a few qualities of truly confident people (not douches):
They take a stand not because they think they are always right… but because they are not afraid to be wrong.
We all know "that guy," the one who is so sure of his own opinion that he would go to the end of the Earth to prove he's right even if the rest of the world knows he's wrong. As Shah writes, "Truly confident people don’t mind being proven wrong. They feel finding out what is right is a lot more important than being right. And when they’re wrong, they’re secure enough to back down graciously."
They duck the spotlight so it shines on others.
Truly confident people don't need to hog the mic or constantly celebrate their own accomplishments in front of everyone just to convey how awesome they are. Trumpeting your every move is a sure sign of insecurity, and the exact opposite of what we're talking about here. If you're awesome, trust me, people know. If you need to tell them, you're not nearly as awesome as you believe yourself to be (and are likely trying just as hard to convince yourself as you are others).
They don't put down other people
Another sign of insecurity is constantly trying to make other people look bad in order to make yourself look better. A truly confident person doesn't need to belittle others to feel better about themselves. But hey, whatever floats your boat.
… And they own their mistakes
A confident person is still a person, meaning at some point they are going to make a mistake. If you can't laugh at yourself or recognize a screw up, you're probably an insecure douche. More so if you refuse to take responsibility for your own shortcomings. As in: "I failed the CPA exam because someone was chewing gum at Prometric" or "I didn't get promoted because my firm sucks" or "Adrienne deleted my comment because she is a fascist" — confident people think more like "I didn't dedicate enough energy to studying for the exam the first time around so I'm going to take it more seriously next time" or "Maybe there are some ways I can be more of a standout at my firm which will get me noticed" or "that comment I made that Adrienne deleted was actually stupid, I should try to be more funny and not talk about feces next time."
So let's discuss confidence. Where are you on the spectrum?
