Don't you love when you have those "aha moments"? The times when you hear something or read something and all of the sudden... everything makes sense.
I do. I had one of those recently when I was listening to an interview with Dr. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic on "Confidence: Overcoming Low Self-Esteem, Insecurity, and Self-Doubt". The surprising truth he stated was that high self confidence was NOT necessarily a good thing and that there were actually benefits to a low level of confidence (like preparing instead of just assuming you could make something up as you go).
It got me thinking about how I operate and how I encourage my coaching clients to think differently as they advance to the next levels in their life and career. I realized that although I am a super positive person with a high level of confidence in my ability to perform, I have NO confidence in my memory and complete reliance on my support structure of routines, tools, and systems.
For example, I have a daily and weekly planning checklist that I look at every single day (even though I've been doing planning for years). I have a checklist of what I do after each coaching session. I even have a mental checklist that I go through before going to bed (pjs on, jewelry off, contacts out, teeth flossed and brushed, face washed, face cream applied).
I also always make a note of something I agree to do, put everything on my calendar (including reminders the day before if there's something unusual like an early morning meeting), and make notes on my calendar to follow up on important action items. I don't do all these things because I take an enormous amount of pleasure in self-discipline, rather I have no trust in myself to remember anything. I know this system is essential to my sanity and ability to consistently perform at a high level.
To have an amazing shift in your life, you need to have less confidence in yourself and more confidence in your systems.