by By Sasha Poll
As a college student, there are a myriad of necessary qualifications that make a hirable social media practitioner. In today’s world it can feel like you need to be a tech wizard, a creative genius and (of course) a team player to even get an interview. However, there is one trait that every social media practitioner must possess in order for their skills to shine: confidence. While you may be thinking that needing confidence sounds silly, or maybe even like the moral of an after school special, studies have shown that there are direct correlations between your self esteem and work performance. Confidence in yourself and your work opens the door as a professional to be heard for your ideas, create lasting connections and to boost self esteem.
Confidence as a social media practitioner can sound daunting, but that doesn’t mean it has to be. While the image of shoulder pads and power suits may come to mind, sometimes something like a firm handshake or presenting an original idea in a meeting can be a massive turning point. While this small act alone won’t secure a dream job or provide workplace validation, it can be the reason that another social media practitioner remembers your name when assembling a team for a project or the reason you get your first career oriented job out of college.
Sometimes confidence can even be shown by explaining you’re confused or expressing when you don’t understand something. While this may not sound like conventional confidence, speaking up about a personal blind spot or fear in a work context can not only convey to your peers that you aren’t too proud to take time to understand something, it can also open the floodgates to those who weren’t confident enough to speak up for themselves. This form of confidence, while considerably less talked about, is crucial for a social media practitioner.
At the end of the day everyone needs confidence to advocate for themselves, both in the workplace and in life. You are always going to be your strongest – and sometimes only – advocate, which is why even a muster of confidence can change your life for the better. While confidence isn’t one shoe fits all, even a small action can become a stepping stone to a fully confident industry professional. As students, we are going to be the social media practitioners of the future which means that having the confidence to speak up for yourself and your opinion could create the next life-changing idea.
Posted by Isaac Bisilki
Great post! Confidence is a big plus in every situation, especially during job interviews. People want us to be sure of what we intend to bring to the table before they say “yes” to us. In fact, confidence shows you are certain of giving off or delivering what you stepped forward to do. I have ever had an interview and a panel member approached me after the interview and said to me, “I like your your confidence. Keep it up!”. However, it can be risky to impose confidence on emptiness–being confident of yourself with nothing to show. It can totally bring you down. So, confidence is important, but it must be shown based on where you are, what you are knowledgeable about, and what you can offer.
Hi Sasha! I really enjoyed your post. Confidence is a crucial quality to have in any setting, but especially the workplace. I feel as a woman, I need to exude confidence all of the time to prevent seeming insecure in my skills. However, it is important to also realize that confidence can become cocky quickly. I think knowing when to be confident, and knowing when you can let your guard down, is important.
Posted by Emma Clouser
I think confidence in the work place can be challenging when you are so consumed of what others might think of you. With all the positive aspects that come along with confidence, it is also importance to recognize your weaknesses and how they will allow you to grow and get over obstacles. Having the confidence to set aside what you know and step out of your comfort zone to experience new challenges. However, having confidence can be tricky when you don’t want to come across as arrogant but if you aren’t exuding confidence then you will be overlooked, it’s a fine line of, “how confident can we really be until it is too much?”
This is a great blog post. I think it was a very good point of how you brought up that confidence can also be someone clarifying a question or not full understanding a topic. It is important to emphasize this because many people sometimes are scared to ask questions, when really it is not only helping yourself, but also other classmates as well. Well done!
This is a great blog post. I think it was a very good point of how you brought up that confidence can also be someone clarifying a question or not full understanding a topic. It is important to emphasize this because many people sometimes are scared to ask questions, when really it is not only helping yourself, but also other classmates as well. Well done!
Confidence plays such a crucial job in the professional world! You touched on different kinds of confidence that I think should be addressed more often. Asking questions in the workplace intimidates some people who prefer to figure something out themselves. Sometimes the best option is to put yourself out there to admit you don’t understand something and want to learn or clarify. Social media requires a lot of multitasks, clarification, and unpredictability. Perhaps confidence is the key to success.
Hi Sasha! I really like how you focused in on one of the most overlooked yet important skills to a successful career in social media management. I think it can be easy to get wrapped up in worrying about what your peers think of you in the workplace rather than trusting your own judgement. This post is a great reminder that an essential part of your professional development comes down to being willing to advocate for yourself!
Great post! I think this is a very important trait for all of us to have right now, especially as seniors looking for jobs. Not only during interviews is confidence important, but having the confidence in yourself to keep going in the overwhelming and humbling job search experience. For me personally, I applied to about 60+ places and only heard back from three. It’s easy to look down on yourself and think, “I’m never going to find a job!” But having that confidence in yourself will not only keep you recognizable and remembered by employers, but it will give you the motivation to keep going.
This is so important to talk about and acknowledge! Confidence takes people far in life, and I have always felt that this skill should be taught or encouraged early on and throughout one’s education. I think it’s great that you used this space to stress the value of confidence and encourage other students to pursue confidence building. I also really liked your point that sometimes being confident means admitting that you need help or don’t know something — that’s so true!
This is a very well-written and insightful post! I enjoyed how you highlighted how gaining confidence can be in the smallest gestures, and it doesn’t take a lot of effort to do the little things. I also like how you discussed that confidence is acquired over time, and no one is born confident in all of their abilities. I think confidence is developed over time by facing failure. Failing at something is one of the best catalysts for growth and confidence because you learn what does and doesn’t work for you.
Confidence is crucial. As I have learned putting your best foot forward takes time and practice to master. There is a fine line between arrogance and confidence and navigating life without belief in yourself and your abilities creates challenges. Challenges are necessary to build a confident mindset. Great post!
Hi Sasha, I really enjoyed your writing on confidence! I think it’s such a crucial skill that is overlooked a lot since it’s not a tangible hard skill. I actually had the opportunity to take a class through the J school all based around the idea of confidence. It turned out to be one of my favorite classes and I use skills I learned from it almost every day. I think that everyone could benefit from a little more confidence, even if we have to fake it at first!
Hi Sasha! I enjoyed reading your blog post discussing the importance of confidence. Overall, this post provided insightful information that’s well-written and articulated a clear message. I agree that confidence is such an impactful and useful skill in the workplace AND life in general. Confidence is such a great quality that I continue to work on every day. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Sasha!
I loved reading your article and related to it so much. Growing up I did a lot of public speaking and have learned over the years how to be confident in myself. Since being in college and majoring in PR, I have realized how far being confident and projecting confidence will take you in this career. Especially being in the comms/social media field, you have to be able to speak up and have a strong voice for yourself. I think you did a great job of explaining the benefits being confidence has not only in social media, but just in every day life.
Hey Sasha,
I enjoyed your post about confidence in the workforce. I think that this is something we forget to inherit when we are becoming too analytical. Confidence can go a long way. Owning something and standing tall during an interview is a very important part of a job. I took a course at UO about confidence, and it served me very well. People can sense confidence very quickly, from far away. Being a communicator, opportunities are huge if you can take on the role of confidence.