Great article and points, George—thank you.

I’ve worked for years to gain confidence through deliberate practice. What’s helped me is having an action plan with clear goals, a strong why, specific strategies, and daily/weekly reflections about what’s working and what’s not.

And most importantly, we have to choose happiness. An action plan can create a solid foundation, but we can’t live in the future. So focusing on our behaviors and showing gratitude for what we have, also helps. And when we develop that habit, it creates self-confidence, and that reduces the need for validation from others.