Grow Your People's Confidence
And they can take on more
You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
~ Eleanor Roosevelt
People really don’t like to step outside their comfort zone. Think about it—it’s called the “comfort zone” for a reason. But if they stay in the same old zone, they will never grow or improve.
So, work on expanding that comfort zone, so they are comfortable and confident with more tasks and situations.
Give people small new tasks that build the skills they will need for larger tasks
Give them feedback and motivation that make them want to do it even better next time
Express your confidence in their capacity to master new things, like: “I think you’d be great at this.” or “I see your potential here.” or “You could really be an asset to the team and make an important contribution with this.”
Empower them in steps, so that they don’t get overwhelmed or stuck or discouraged or take something off the rails. “Come and give me a status update once you’ve done part A, and we’ll set you up with what you need for Part B.”
But don’t take them fully out of their comfort zone—EXPAND their comfort zone, and they will become more competent and confident in a wider variety of situations.
(Photo by Kid Circus on Unsplash)
