Beat Your Secret Confidence Killer

Kiyona Miah, Program Analyst, Census Bureau

Duration: 10:06 mins

Discussion Questions:

Is there an issue or challenge that keeps you up at night? Are you missing out on opportunities?
What skill would help your career?
Are you ready to face your fears?
How can you better utilize resources available to you, tackle small challenges and believe in yourself?

Recap:

Kiyona Miah, Program Analyst at the U.S. Census Bureau, has a secret confidence killer. Kiyona struggles with public speaking and private speaking…well all speaking in general.

Growing up she spoke too fast, didn’t understand the importance of annunciating her words and had to go to speech class in order to improve her speaking.

Kiyona let her fear of speaking kill her confidence. Her outgoing leadership attributes were overshadowed by her nervousness on the outside.

But Kiyona didn’t let her speaking problems prevent her from reaching her goals.

Do you have a certain challenge that gives you anxiety? Do you miss out on opportunities in fear that you’ll fail? Follow Kiyona’s three steps and take back your confidence.

1: Utilize available resources: Kiyona got involved in mentoring program available in her community. Mentors show you great things about yourself you may have overlooked. She also joined Toastmasters to craft her public speaking. Find the experts you admire and see if you can sit at their elbow.

2: Tackle small challenges: Know the six P’s: Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Kiyona’s first speech at Toastmasters was one minute long and gradually increased until she could tackle a 15-minute speech. You may not be able to purge your fear over night, but a gradual process of small steps can rid you of your anxiety.

3: Believe in yourself: Kiyona surrounded herself with a great supporting cast. People believing in you gives you confidence to believe in yourself. Don’t be your worst critic but your biggest fan. Recognize what you do well.

These tips can improve your behavior in and out of the office. Turn your confidence killer into a confidence pillar.