For those who lack confidence, it can be very hard to find a place in the world. It seems that there are always those who are more willing to flaunt their abilities, which tends to make the less confident person shy away and hide in the background. Those who are lacking in confidence have a tendency to believe that if others want to be seen so badly they (the less confident) should allow them the spotlight. However, this trend does have a tendency to make one not feel so good about him or herself. The solution is a lot easier said than done.
To build confidence and feel good about yourself you have to be willing to step out of your comfort zone and into the realm of the unknown. This is something that everyone eventually has to do. By so doing, you are reaching beyond what you know and bringing yourself to a level that you might have never reached before.
Let me show you what I mean with a story. Allan was a very quiet man. He never overstepped his bounds or stood up for himself. He just always did as he was told by everyone. After a while, this began to wear on him and his marriage. He was ever the dutiful husband and son, but something would eventually have to give.
One night as he and his pregnant wife were leaving his parent’s house, his mother had the nerve to call his wife fat. For anyone who has ever been pregnant or known someone else that was pregnant, you know that you don’t call a pregnant woman fat. Well, his wife had to stand up for herself. She knew this because she had been dealing with his mother for a few years now. It was something that she just accepted. To keep the peace, all she quietly said was “I am not fat. Please don’t call me that.”
His mother decided to be relentless and get the last word in. The poor young woman had to listen to taunts and teases as she attempted to get into the vehicle to leave. Finally, her dear sweet husband, who never said a bad word toward anyone, turned to his own mother and said, “She is not fat. Do not call her that, or we will not be coming by again. Do you understand?”
It took a lot of courage for a man of such a quiet nature to stand up to his own mother, but in the long run it ended up saving his marriage and giving him the confidence that he needed to be a good husband. This is just one instance of someone standing up and finding the courage to feel good about who he was as a person.