What causes low confidence?

First off I'd like to note I had wrote the post for this thread and when I clicked to make the thread it said I had too few characters (the post was three paragraphs long). God dammit.

Anyway when talking to people about their problems I think a very common root to most issues is low confidence. Many people believe they are unequipped to handle whatever issue is troubling them or they otherwise fear things will end badly if they were to attempt to confront it. But why? The problem is that this lack of confidence is irrational. They are not actually unequipped to handle the problem they simply believe themselves to be so.

I'm looking to figure out why people have this issue. Perhaps through greater understanding of the causes one could better propose a viable solution.

environmental factors play a large role in self confidence as a child is growing up. Not many children are nurtured to believe in themselves and often the results show through.

there are many factors for lack of self confidence. sometimes it is out of fear of embarrassment because of a previous experience that had negative implications attached to it.

But beyond that it is much more primal. Human beings have a "flight or Fight" response in many situations. We either let our instincts tell us we are capable of doing such a thing or we chicken out and run away.



the reasons for low self-confidence are limitless, but almost all of them could be improved if society would only behave better as a whole. Sadly this is likely never going to happen.

I dont understand the analogy.

Like many sane I's, and the odd rogue E - giggles :p

Confidence in what, to speak/answer socially, interact. To be who we are or pretend that which we are not.

*wicked teleports out of this one into the arms of a corseted booted neophyte offering muffins galore (not blueberry uns as they are made by the Beezlebub himself

There are too many factors to figure into this in order to come up with some clean, crisp, definate answer. You can't put emotion into a formula - you can guess but we all know that guesses are uncertain. I would have to agree that belief in one's self is probably what hinders people the most. Unless someone were to claim they were perfect then they no doubt have some type of issue (no matter how small) with self confidence. In any case to sum it up - I believe low self confidence is driven by emotion - an unpredictable factor.

The world's reactions to us is a mirror of ourselves. If someone has bad results on something, it's only natural that he'll grow to be non confident. Likewise, good results make you confident. Competence brings confidence.

I don't think it's always irrational...I genuinely can't take romantic intimacy - I'm not ready yet, - this leads to low-self confidence in this area, not because bad feelings and insecurities tell me I can't cope, but because I know I can't cope due to experience. I guess it's the expectation coming from experience of my reaction. Like nut allergies may lead to a rash, romantic intimacy leads me to a veriety of symptoms, none of which postive or confidence instilling.

Deep down the reaction is sort've irrational, but the low-confidence is not. Having high confidence would be very, very irrational and lead mine and others' health to be endangered.


As for general root, I think jelouch sort've has it down. I think more than competence though; balance/consistency also.

To be hurt unsettles/dents/attacks the self-confidence - whether negative/low self-opinion, or environmental unease/inconsistency, which essentially leads to negative/low self-opinion -, I think we underestimate the power of experience and our own sensitivity.

I don't even believe in low confidence(Trauma is real though), people have flaws, shit happens.

It's just fear, nothing else.

People give "confidence" too much attention, which causes anxiety, which causes problems.

What causes it, is society talking about it, and telling you to self-loath.

Confidence is about perception:

1. How you see the world.
2. How the world sees you.
3. How you think the world sees you.

These three factors can work with or against each other and depending on the weight of one's own conscience, ability to perceive, and actions, they will react in a variety of ways that will often be interpreted as "confidence" or a lack of confidence.

The first and last are probably the most important because they are both internalized responses. The first, how you see the world, can be heavily shaded by one's objectivity, emotions, and how well they are able to naturally interact with the world around them. The last one, how one thinks they see the world, perhaps has some of the most profundities. Often times, we let ourselves be swayed by what we think everyone else thinks, or by otherwise over-psychoanalyzing a situation. This can work for both the positive and negative aspects, but is probably most notable when it is perceived as a lack of confidence.

The middle, how the world sees you, is perhaps the most objective view of reality's perception of an individual, and what we stress ourselves the most about. Incorrect analysis or perception of this leads to the third aspect, but taken in absolutely objective terms can be the most beneficial and allow someone to best adapt and integrate within a society while maintaining true individuality.

Keeping this post short. =/

I agree with spades that confidence is about perception.
But how the world sees you, or how you see the world has little to do with it.
Ok...maybe that is not completely right. It has something to do with it, but it is not the core.
The most important is how you see yourself.
Confidence is all in the mind. In order to build your confidence you just have to lie enough to yourself.
I encourage everyone with low confidence to talk to themselves in the mirror a few times a day.
Boost yourself up. Tell yourself you are the best, that you have what it takes.
If you tell yourself the same things over and over,then incautiously, you will start to believe it.

If one is raised and surrounded by people who can see only his / her weaknesses.... It's like a learned behavior.
Perhaps that explains why some young kids / teenagers committed suicide after they encountered with internet bullies.