Diminishing Self-Doubt - Friend or Ally?

Now that we are on the final post for this topic, I must reveal the ugly truth to you: Doubt is inevitable. It’s going to come whether as a temptation to just not write or as a lifestyle that consumes your every thought in the day. Though we have learned about what self-doubt is and how it drags us down, there is actually a way to have it work for you instead of against you.

In Mel Gibson’s star role as Mr. Marshall in the movie, What Women Want, I think most women would consider him to be overconfident in his ability to “read” women. Only later when he gets the ability to hear what women think does he really get the full picture of how women view him, which wasn't too good. There is such a thing as too much confidence. When someone has too much confidence in themselves, it leads to either a rude awakening (we as the average Joes hope) or never reaching full potential because of the false belief in their ability to accomplish the tasks. Just like a college student who has no doubt he or she can finish a 5-page paper 10 minutes before it’s due, too much confidence can come back to bite us in the butt. Giving yourself a false belief that you can accomplish something without a realistic aspect about it is not a wise decision.

Now, how can we turn the tables on self-doubt? We’ve expressed that too much confidence means someone is about to get burned. But too much self-doubt prevents one from taking any risk for his or her future goals and aspirations. So, where is the fine line? When you have done your best. That’s all the world can ask of you is your best. You must have the courage to not just write, but to “write well…a writer has to move past the epic fear we all face, and do it anyway” (Bialosky, 3). A person without any doubt in their minds will not do their best on anything they have to do. They will “not engage in the struggle to get it exactly right on the page, but rather, will assume that (he or) she’s already getting it right without the struggle" (Bialosky, 3). Having some doubt is good! But don’t let it go overboard or completely off the radar. Without the struggle to get it right, there wouldn’t be a story worth pursuing. Everything that is worth it in this life doesn’t come without a fight. So take up your sword of motivation and fight against self-doubt before it is too late!

Works Cited

Bialosky, Jill. "Dani Shapiro: Self-doubt Is a Writer’s Best Friend." Salon. N.p., 13 Nov. 2013. Web. 29 Jan. 2017.