When I started my first job after college, I was terrified to speak up in meetings. It wasn’t that I didn’t have ideas or insights—I had plenty. But I feared stepping on toes, looking foolish, or simply being wrong. I watched my colleagues confidently pitch their thoughts, often moving up the ladder quickly, even when their ideas weren’t always the best. Meanwhile, I stayed silent, despite sometimes knowing a better way forward.

It wasn’t until years later, when I became a manager, that I truly understood the importance of confidence—not just for my own growth but for fostering leadership at every level of an organization. I realized that confidence isn’t merely an individual trait–it’s a catalyst that transforms how people work together, problem-solve, and grow.

This realization didn’t happen overnight. It was the result of observing patterns in workplaces, experimenting with how to make meetings more inclusive, and reflecting on the missed opportunities of my early career. What if I had spoken up sooner? What if I had been encouraged to develop that confidence earlier in life?

The False Halo of Confidence

Let’s get one thing straight: confidence doesn’t always equal competence. As a manager, I’ve seen people assertively champion ideas that were half-baked, and I’ve also seen quieter team members sit on groundbreaking solutions. Leadership doesn’t mean having all the answers—it means creating an environment where all voices are heard. Early in my career as a team lead, I decided to set up meetings differently: structured formats where everyone had a chance to contribute, and an open invitation to share questions as well as solutions. I learned that confidence is as much about speaking up as it is about enabling others to do the same.

Still, the corporate world tends to reward boldness over substance. This system perpetuates a cycle where the loudest voices often lead, sometimes at the expense of more thoughtful, measured ones. To challenge this, we need to go deeper—beyond offices and into how we prepare people for leadership in the first place.

Leadership Starts Early

Think about this: by the time most people enter the workforce, they’ve already internalized decades of messaging about confidence. Many kids are told to sit quietly, follow rules, and wait their turn to be called on. They’re exposed to enormous amounts of information, but they aren’t necessarily taught how to shape it into something useful—or how to feel confident presenting their ideas to others.

Imagine if, instead, we encouraged kids to engage with information creatively. What if classrooms emphasized problem-solving through collaboration and communication rather than rote memorization? What if leadership wasn’t an extracurricular activity for a chosen few but a core skill taught to everyone?

Building confidence in this way isn’t just about encouraging kids to speak up. It’s about teaching them how to construct ideas, critique thoughtfully, and listen actively. If you can teach a child to shape their thoughts into something coherent and compelling, you’re not just building their confidence—you’re laying the groundwork for their leadership.

Redefining Leadership in the Workplace

For those already in the workforce, the question becomes: how do we nurture confidence at every level? One way is by reframing what it means to lead. Leadership doesn’t only come with titles or formal authority. The best leaders I’ve worked with were often the ones who empowered others to find their voices, not just the ones who spoke the loudest.

Take team meetings, for example. As a manager, I’ve learned that asking for “solutions only” can shut people down. Not everyone feels confident presenting a fully baked idea, but many are great at asking insightful questions that move the conversation forward. Encouraging these kinds of contributions can shift the dynamic in a way that benefits everyone.

Confidence can also be modeled. When leaders show vulnerability—admitting when they don’t know something or seeking input from their teams—they create a safe space for others to do the same. This, in turn, fosters a culture of shared growth and mutual respect.

The Education Revolution We Need

Now, let’s zoom out. If we want to address the confidence gap on a larger scale, we need to start with education. What if we stopped treating confidence as a personality trait and started treating it as a skill—one that can be taught, practiced, and refined?

Imagine a school curriculum designed to build confidence through collaboration and communication. Instead of “show and tell,” we could have “build and present,” where students create something in teams and then explain their process and decisions. Instead of graded debate, we could have open forums where the goal is to learn from others, not to win.

These changes would do more than just prepare kids to lead—they’d prepare them to listen, empathize, and grow. They’d create a generation of people who feel not only confident in their ideas but also curious about the ideas of others.

Confidence as Creation

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about confidence, it’s this: confidence is about creation. When you can shape your thoughts into something tangible—whether it’s a proposal, a solution, or even a question—you’re creating a new reality. And when you share that creation with others, you’re leading.

The same principle applies to organizations, classrooms, and communities. Confidence, at its best, isn’t about asserting dominance; it’s about building something together. It’s about transforming ideas into action, and action into progress.

Whether you’re a new employee afraid to speak up, a manager trying to foster collaboration, or an educator rethinking how to prepare the next generation, remember this: confidence isn’t just a tool for survival. It’s a catalyst for growth—for individuals, teams, and society as a whole. Let’s start treating it that way.