Why You Should Confront Every Doubt (in Yourself and Others)

Disclaimer: What’s written below is meant to be motivational in nature. It provides little in actionable advice.

Navigating through the nuance of human interaction requires uninterrupted attention to detail. Intuition will play a large factor in how you choose to react to others. Two people can say the exact same words in two very different ways. Should you react the same way to both despite the differences with which they present their information? Your intuitive thoughts will entice you to doubt those who give you the creeps, and love those who your subconscious grows fond of.

When you do have doubts about an interaction you find yourself in, should you explore these doubts or let them pass? For example, let’s say you suspect your close friend of being depressed because of the mannerisms which they exhibit when they speak to you. Would you confront your intuition in this case? Would you ask your friend about their well-being and drive the conversation toward exploring their mental state? How about the girl who came by your desk today, should you ask her out? Do her mannerisms mean the same to her as they mean to you?


Information Is Risky to Attain


Doubts are birthed by risk. The situation of asking out your crush on a date is a risky one. You risk being rejected, thereby making the doubts you feel somewhat warranted. As you already know however, taking risks brings forth reward. The odds can play out in your favor and the main reward of doing what scares you most is one of growth. If you come out of risky situations unscathed, your tolerance of them increases. You’ll discover untapped levels of confidence in successfully asking out your crush.

The knowledge you’re exposed to tends to increase in value should it be attained through risky means.

Confronting your doubts helps understand the risk involved in attaining new information and helps you make educated choices on whether to proceed. Your confrontation of doubt should last right up until the things you doubt are certain to bring you pain. If you’re confronting things you’re sure will bring you pain, then you should retreat. However, breaking down your doubts into digestible pieces to overcome and learn from, can benefit you greatly.

If we go back to the example of asking out your crush, you can confront doubts of whether they have interest in you step by step. Casual conversation can provide some answers. You can break down their interactions with you into verbal actions and non-verbal tells. You can become tuned into which jokes they laugh at and how they respond to physical touch. Rather than allowing your doubts to stop you from pursuing further, attempt to discover if they’re valid by following the details. Discover their validity by breaking larger doubts into smaller pieces. By choosing to confront bite-sized bits of doubt early in the process, you continue attaining information throughout.


We Are Confident in What We Explore Ourselves


Exploring the doubtful realms of your day allows you to set yourself up to master them. Whether your doubtful realms include public speaking, or a fear of heights, exploring those realms will familiarize you with them. Familiarity with life’s more fearsome instances increases bravery to continue tackling them going forward. Thriving in situations which make you doubtful will become the norm should you tackle every doubt with confidence. The doubts you have of others and yourself are invitations to learn some painful but beneficial lessons in life. Our doubtful moments from five years back do not compare to what brings about doubt today. We’ve tackled what we’ve feared, and have grown to fear things more dangerous to us and our surroundings.

Allow doubt to serve as a sort of beacon that shows the way toward your growth. Explore the doubts you have in others as well as yourself. Explore what you fear and what you’re unconfident in. Become familiar with everything about those things, and allow your doubt to morph into solidified confidence. If you are doubtful of someone else’s actions, align yourself to explore their actions further. Move toward the doubt if you get a feeling that your boss is lowering your responsibility, and thereby importance, on your team. Ask them questions about what you’ve noticed, and explain your thought process in connecting the dots of evidence you’ve gathered.

People tend to respond in favorable ways to one’s inquiries into doubt. If you present your concerns unemotionally, they’ll be understood and steps toward mitigating them will be taken early. You will lower your regret by confronting the things you doubt head on, and will continue on your way to developing a rock-solid state of mind.


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Disclaimer of Opinion: This article is presented only as opinion. It does not make any scientific, factual, or legal claims. Please critically analyze all claims made and independently decide on its validity.