We often judge confidence by how apparent it is. A confident person, we presume, is out front leading the crowd.
While confident people do attract followers, true confidence is not always in the foreground. Many times, the signs of a truly confident person are much more subtle.
Confidence does not have to prove herself. While others seek to compare and lift themselves up, confidence keeps her mouth shut. She knows that no words make her successful. Her actions prove themselves.
If I speak out of insecurity, then I do not know true confidence. Though I have all knowledge and understanding, yet I still seek to cut others down, I am nothing. Though I perform flawlessly, and outperform everyone else, I do not have confidence unless I can be quiet in the face of other insecure people.
Confidence allows another person to complete a project even if she is 5 times as qualified for the task. Confidence does not boast in her own accomplishments.
Confidence can accept a compliment with grace. But she laughs without reproach when others make a joke at her expense.
The true test of confidence comes when she is attacked personally. If she can dissolve the situation without lashing out at the attacker, you can know she is true.
Confidence is not a gift. She is an art that needs to be cultivated, and a skill that can be grown by all who seek her.
