It’s in your head. And it won’t get out. That little voice only you can hear. Yet it’s loud and clear. You’re not good enough. You can’t do it. You’re an imposter. A fake. A fraud. And you’re about to be found out. We’ve all been there. Now how do we get out? How do we become more confident? That’s what we’re going to look into today. Welcome to Episode 50- yes, I said 50– of Navigating the Fustercluck—a podcast full of snackable insights to help you navigate the bittersweet world of creativity & marketing. My name is Wegs, like eggs with a W, joining you from Deaf Mule Studios in Dallas. Thanks again for making our first 50 episodes such a success. The initial goal was to do 52 shows. A year’s worth. And now we’re almost there. And not only did we become an iTunes New & Noteworthy selection, you’ve given us over 100 5-star reviews. And we appreciate it. If you’ve found Navigating the Fustercluck to be helpful, please share it. As we share insights on the relationship between creativity and confidence. How do we quiet our inner-critic? That little voice inside our head. As Winston Churchill said… When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you. And don’t you already have enough real obstacles to overcome?As IDEO’s Tom and David Kelley state in their book Creative Confidence:Creativity, far from requiring rare gifts and skulls, depends on what you believe you can do with the talents and skills you already have. Self-Fulfilling Prophecy According to Tanner Christensen…Many of us who have a powerful creative drive refuse to let it become more than just a few occasional day dreams not because we lack creative capabilities, but because we lack the creative confidence necessary to do the work. We think to ourselves: “I can’t write a novel, I’m not a writer” or similar thoughts. The result is that we end up fulfilling the prophecy. We don’t feel like a writer, so we don’t write, which ensures that we don’t become a writer.  Fear of Being JudgedIf the scribbling, singing, dancing kindergartner symbolizes unfettered creative expression, the awkward teenager represents the opposite: someone who cares—deeply—about what other people think. It takes only a few years to develop that fear of judgment, but it stays with us throughout our adult lives, often constraining our careers. Most of us accept that when we are learning, say, to ski, others will see us fall down until practice pays off. But we can’t risk our business-world ego in the same way. As a result, we self-edit, killing potentially creative ideas because we’re afraid our bosses or peers will see us fail. We stick to “safe” solutions or suggestions. We hang back, allowing others to take risks. But you can’t be creative if you are constantly censoring yourself.Growing OUT of Creativity I love this notion that comes from a quote from Sir Ken Robinson, whose popular TED Talk you may want to check out. We don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it. Or rather, we get educated out of it. The problem is… No one is going to pay much attention to the person who has no confidence in himself. That’s what fashion maven, Tim Gunn says. The Chicken or the Egg Are self-confident people more successful? Or do successful people become more self-confident? In this chicken-or-the-egg argument, one thing is certain: every study conducted in the past 50 years on self-confidence and success has proven that the two are at least related. That is, self-confident people are more successful in all ar...