Why it’s better to be overconfident

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Who would you rather work with: Someone who is overconfident or someone who is too cautious? It’s a bit of a trick question. The right answer will depend on how far their confidence strays from their true ability.

All things being equal, I would personally rather work with someone who is overconfident. My reasoning? They are creating an environment that will force adaption. They will learn and grow over time.

Yes, their confidence will run ahead of their ability. But that’s actually the point! Today’s overconfidence is tomorrow’s ability.

All things are not always equal though. It’s one thing to bite off more than you’re used to, it’s another thing to bite off more than you can chew. As James clear put it, you don’t want to be so detached from reality that you become delusional.

Most people are in no danger of overconfidence though. They are capable of more than they believe. They aim too low instead of too high and become their own bottleneck.

What’s the ideal level of confidence then? We don’t want to err on the low side. And we definitely want to stop short of being delusional. The sweet spot is slight overconfidence. Just beyond what you think your actual ability is.