Is being confident overrated?

[usernamed]

I dont know about you guys... but I think it is.

What purpose does being confident serve?...Seriously think about it??? 

I mean, there is little evidence for the positive effects of high confidence, and more evidence for its detrimental effects.

Think about it this way:

If you think you're bad at presenting(standing infront of a large group of people and presenting something to them), you are more likely to prepare more for your presentation. But if you're really confident about it, you are less likely to prepare yourself. Also its been proven that most people over-estimate their abilities, so you are probably not as good as you think you are at something. So I just think that having high confidence is more likely to hinder your ability for self-improvement, because a highly confident person is more likely to perceive themselves as better at doing something than they really are. They basically have a more biased view of themselves.

Also another thing I would like to add is that why is confidence more valued than kindness, being compassionate, humility, seeking knowledge, and being hard working?

In my opinion, all of these characteristics matter more. WAY more. So why has society got to a point where they place SOOOO much emphasis on being confident?

I'm not saying lets all develop a seriously low self esteem and be insecure all the freakin time. But all I'm saying is that being humble matters more. There's a middle ground, and that is being humble. Thinking highly of yourself in any way doesn't benefit you and certainly doesnt benefit anyone else. It only makes people live in this kind of delusional and biased view of themselves.

 

[Vioh]

Excuse me for saying this, but I found so many things that are wrong with your arguments. First, I think you are really misusing the word "confidence".

 

I'm not saying lets all develop a seriously low self esteem and be insecure all the freakin time. But all I'm saying is that being humble matters more. There's a middle ground, and that is being humble. Thinking highly of yourself in any way doesn't benefit you and certainly doesnt benefit anyone else. It only makes people live in this kind of delusional and biased view of themselves.

 

Humbleness and confidence are not opposite to each other. In fact, both of them are ones of those qualities that make up an ideal person. On the other hand, arrogance and humbleness are 'mutually exclusive' (i.e. you can't be humble and arrogant at the same time). Arrogant people would think highly of themselves. Confident people would not!

 

Look, confidence isn't a black & white thing. A guy may be very confident at public speaking, but if he doesn't know what the hell he is talking about, then he is not confident about the knowledge that he is presenting. And to me, a good public speaker must have confidence in both areas.

 

What purpose does being confident serve?

 

Let me tell you a difference between a confident & a shy person. Back when I was still in pre-IB, I didn't only suck at presenting something, but I also got nervous every time I spoke in front of people. I remembered having a presentation in geography, and I sweat so much. Man, it was like having a shower in front of my entire class. probably one of the most embarrassing moment of my entire life. Now, back in the day when I still lacked confidence, I was always trying to avoid speaking in public, and I was extremely nervous (i.e. my mental mind was stressed out at the maximum level). And this is when having confidence is extremely important because confidence doesn't only help you to fight against all the stresses, but it will also help you to get the job done. Simple as that!!!

 

If you think you're bad at presenting(standing infront of a large group of people and presenting something to them), you are more likely to prepare more for your presentation. But if you're really confident about it, you are less likely to prepare yourself. Also its been proven that most people over-estimate their abilities, so you are probably not as good as you think you are at something. So I just think that having high confidence is more likely to hinder your ability for self-improvement, because a highly confident person is more likely to perceive themselves as better at doing something than they really are. They basically have a more biased view of themselves.

 

As I have mentioned, having confidence is good. However, if you have too much confidence such that it hinders your ability for self-improvement, then you would be over-confident. And that is a bad thing that nobody would want. You can think of "being over-confident" as equivalent to "being arrogant". So if you meant "over-confident" in the above paragraph of yours, then I completely agree with you.

 

Also another thing I would like to add is that why is confidence more valued than kindness, being compassionate, humility, seeking knowledge, and being hard working?

In my opinion, all of these characteristics matter more. WAY more. So why has society got to a point where they place SOOOO much emphasis on being confident?

 

I don't understand this question, because I and many people around me don't value confidence more than kindness, hard-working, or being compassionate. These qualities are all important as they are qualities that make up a good person. And that's all I care about.

 

So to summarize, I think your thread should be directed towards people who are arrogant, not those who are confident.

[Great Polar Bear]

I dont know about you guys... but I think it is.

What purpose does being confident serve?...Seriously think about it??? 

I mean, there is little evidence for the positive effects of high confidence, and more evidence for its detrimental effects.

Think about it this way:

If you think you're bad at presenting(standing infront of a large group of people and presenting something to them), you are more likely to prepare more for your presentation. But if you're really confident about it, you are less likely to prepare yourself. Also its been proven that most people over-estimate their abilities, so you are probably not as good as you think you are at something. So I just think that having high confidence is more likely to hinder your ability for self-improvement, because a highly confident person is more likely to perceive themselves as better at doing something than they really are. They basically have a more biased view of themselves.

Also another thing I would like to add is that why is confidence more valued than kindness, being compassionate, humility, seeking knowledge, and being hard working?

In my opinion, all of these characteristics matter more. WAY more. So why has society got to a point where they place SOOOO much emphasis on being confident?

I'm not saying lets all develop a seriously low self esteem and be insecure all the freakin time. But all I'm saying is that being humble matters more. There's a middle ground, and that is being humble. Thinking highly of yourself in any way doesn't benefit you and certainly doesnt benefit anyone else. It only makes people live in this kind of delusional and biased view of themselves.

 

Confidence gives you a huge psychological boost at whatever task it is you're doing. Your argument about a non-confident person (with regard to giving presentations) preparing more is accurate but only to a lesser extent. A person who is confident about presentations does not go into a presentation without knowing what he/she has to say (and deliver in the presentation), especially if it is the kind of presentation that is being graded.

 

Confidence is not overrated. You are making assumptions: creating cause-and-effect relationships between confidence and preparedness or confidence and improvement. Do not associate confidence with these characteristics, think of it as an independent trait. If someone has prepared well, and they are confident, they are in a better position than someone who has prepared equally well and is not confident.

 

In most settings, confidence is one of those variables based on which we "mentally classify" individuals, and if you are studying IB Psychology, you could apply the concept of "in groups" and "out groups". Basically, no matter what the social setting, we are always displaying some level of confidence. It is something that can be measured more frequently, compared to, say, something like seeking knowledge or being hardworking. These could only be monitored in select settings that we don't find often find ourselves in. I disagree with the notion, however, that confidence is the most valued trait. I believe that depends from person to person, and society to society. For instance, South Asian society definitely values "being hardworking" and "seeking knowledge" more than "confidence".

Edited July 4, 2015 by Great Polar Bear

[Cathy]

Well, to be quite honest -- being confident is useful, but it doesn't guarantee success. Although your arguments are a little naive, I do  to some extent agree with you when you say that confidence is overrated.

Before I begin: confidence is not a bad thing. Don't get me wrong -- it's a very good thing. However, it is often mistaken with thoughtless bravado, meaningless statements, fruitless speeches full of charisma but lacking in substance. Take this guy from my class. He was absolutely confident he would get a 7 in HL History -- so confident that he only applied to one high ranking university, because he just KNEW he'd get that 7. Unfortunately, he ended up getting a 5. Oops.