My Three C’s to Success, are confidence, control and conviction. These have helped me in my life as well as the lives many of my employees and people I have trained throughout the past 25 years. Understanding the meaning of these three words, learning, practicing, and living by them can change people’s lives for the better.
The definition of confidence by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary is a ‘‘feeling or belief that you can do something well’’. Think about a time when you were confident or for that matter, not confident. How did it affect your situation? When you were confident in your abilities, people saw that and were attracted to that quality, whether it was in a business or personal setting. Confidence portrayed in the right way is alluring and even sexy. For example, a confident actor can play just about any role and have us believing they truly are that character through their self-assurance. Think of the people you are doing business with. You trust them and believe in them based upon their confidence. If they lacked confidence, you would not utilize their services. Being confident brings about a feeling of security and truth.
Merriam-Webster defines control as ‘‘being the power to influence or direct people’s behavior or the course of events’’. This includes leadership, authority, sway and the ability to direct and command. Let’s think about the people in our lives that are in leadership positions because of the control they exude. In both business and personal lives, having control over a situation always makes us feel safe and protected. However, losing control or not having control over a situation from the start can cause fear and even chaos. Being in control requires confidence and an ability to supervise and direct a situation. This can produce results in both a positive and negative way. For example, Adolf Hitler was a master at control and obviously used it for the destruction of others. In the news, we hear about everyday people who take control of a situation and help others to achieve a positive outcome. Let’s use our control in a positive manner to help and empower others.
Conviction is ‘a strong opinion or belief’. You are certain of something. I believe this develops from having both confidence and control. When speaking with conviction, people will believe and take your word as truth. They often use body language such as hand movements, eye contact, facial expressions and body stance to relay their message. Their communication skills and vocabulary are very powerful. They have passion and convey their opinions to others in a way that draws their audience in. But the listener must beware. As a negative example, conviction can be used to persuade someone to commit a crime. On a positive note, conviction can be used to help and inspire others such as the motivational speaker Tony Robbins. Through his positive speaking, Tony creates change and offers strategies for success. His conviction can bring about positive life-changing results. Confidence, control and conviction can be used to improve any area of your life, whether you are a sales professional, business owner, model, doctor, lawyer or any other professional. All three of these traits are intertwined. If used in a positive manner, they can bring about improved results, prosperity and success.
