Courage vs. Confidence

I sat down with a local friend this morning, and we found ourselves deep in conversation about what really happens inside us as we grow a business. Not just the strategy or skills—but the feelings that bubble up as we reach for something bigger.

Things like fear. Imposter syndrome. That little voice whispering, Can I really do this?

And it got me thinking…

There’s so much internal transition happening when we step into entrepreneurship. We’re not just learning how to market, sell, or lead… we’re learning how to navigate the shift in identity that comes with it. (And this happens over and over and over again…)

Feeling fear or self-doubt doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It means you’re growing.

When we do things that are new—launch an offer, raise our prices, hire a team—of course we feel unsure. We haven’t practiced those skills yet. And without practice, there’s no competence… and without competence, there’s no confidence.

So, how do we move forward without confidence?

With courage.
We show up anyway.

We do it scared.

(Insert my favorite Elisabeth Elliot quote here. “Sometimes fear does not subside and one must choose to do it afraid.”

Another favorite teacher, Dan Sullivan, talks about this beautifully. He says:

"Courage and confidence are two sides of the same coin.
They’re both about tackling the task—
one just feels a lot better than the other."

• Courage means you do something when it still feels bad.

• Confidence means you do something and it feels good.

Entrepreneurs need to learn to stay in the uncomfortable middle long enough—the place where it doesn’t feel good, where courage is required—until they cross over to confidence.

Courage gets you through.
Confidence comes next.

Courage gets you to confidence.

And as we grow in courage, our external skills and our internal identity start to hold hands.

You start becoming the person who can do the things you once thought you couldn’t- then you arrive at confidence and it feels good.