The Confidence Effect

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Using Data to Your Advantage

Feelings are vital in forming your personal and professional brand, and even in fueling your burgeoning sense of confidence. But when it comes to delivering results, the use of data—i.e., cold, hard facts—is crucial in the all-important realms of decision making and, ultimately, influence.

I Second That Emotion

When we’re beginning our careers or are new to an organization, conversations are less formal; risks are lower and outcomes less dependent on—and vital to—the organization’s overarching success. For this reason, emotions, hunches, and instincts tend to play a bigger role in our decision-making process.

It’s easier to sit around a room, informally, and make quick decisions based on gut feelings and work through ...