How to Gain More Confidence (and why it’s so damn hard to achieve)

Anxious people are, by nature, critical thinkers. As in, we are able to analyze a lot of details all at once.

Back when I taughtcollege composition I drilled the importance of critical thinking into my students like a pizza chef pounding fresh dough mercilessly. I basically would spend the entire semester shrieking “You only have one life and youbetter be a critical thinker in this world!!” (Reminder: the word “critical” isn’t used in the negative connotation here. It means you are objectivel...