Written by Maxie McCoy for Shine

There's this really amazing skill in life called maximizing your strengths and playing to them whenever possible. Not only does it put you in a position to be more successful, but it also it keeps you feeling energized when you're working within your talents.

From work, to interpersonal relationships, to creative hobbies, playing to your strengths is a great tactic for success.

On the flip side, however, dismissing your weaknesses can hold you back. 

How many times have you ever muttered the words, “I’m just not good at that.” Whether it was spreadsheets, entrepreneurship, painting, surfing, or public speaking, assuming that you’re not good at something and therefore staying away from it is a recipe for dissatisfaction. 

Believing that your talents, skills, and competencies are static is a huge lie you’re telling yourself. 

According to renowned Stanford Psychology Professor Caroline Dweck, the most successful people in life believe that everything develops and grows. They have a growth mindset which is shown to directly correlate to confidence as challenges are met with optimism in order to improve.

Believing that your talents, skills, and competencies are static is a huge lie you’re telling yourself. 

You simply need to rewire your brain to believe that you can absolutely get better at whatever you put your mind and energy toward. Getting into action on new skills helps build self-efficacy and creates new opportunities for you across the board. 

To harness a growth-mindset and improve your confidence start here:

Identify where you feel your skills are innate or predetermined

Where are you staying on the sidelines of your life? What things do you feel drawn towards but have convinced yourself that you’re just not good at?

Identifying these competencies is the first step in creating an action plan to improve them. Try listing out all the things you’ve ever assumed that you’re not good at. Circle the one or two you wish you were better at. And voila, you have a skill worth putting your energy toward.

Measure effort and improvement

No one wakes up as the best gymnast in the world. Nor do they become an amazing public speaker just by breathing. Anyone who is great at something has dedicated time and energy towards it. 

Everything about you can and will get better with effort. If you track and measure where you started and how you progress, you’ll be fueled with more encouragement to keep going when you see the positive outcomes. 

Know It’s Always a Stretch and Act Anyways

Anyone who does something that they don’t feel strong at feels the discomfort of a stretch. The greats? They do it anyways. They level up. The feel the stretch and keep going for it. 

"Anyone who is great at something has dedicated time and energy towards it."

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Having a growth-mindset keeps you moving toward that stretch instead of away from it. Stretching is key to knowing that eventually you’ll be able to reach the new level you so desire. 

Remember these four tips whenever you find yourself “convinced” that you’re bad at something. Harnessing a growth mindset will remind you that you’re not bad, you’re just inexperienced and being hard on yourself. 

If there's something you really want to experience, master, or create... don't let a few shoddy attempts discourage you. Because you're not static. You're not stagnant. You're not still. You're not bad at it. You're just not far enough in to have gotten good. Fiercely believe that you can, and you will.

An original version of this appeared on Shine. 

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