Many professionals in French-speaking Switzerland today feel a lack of self-confidence. This is not always visible from the outside, but it can hinder important decisions, public speaking, career transitions, or simply the ability to feel at ease. The pace of work, responsibilities, and social expectations often amplify this phenomenon.
At Coaching Léman, we support people in person in Geneva, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Lausanne, as well as online, to strengthen a solid, aligned, and available inner foundation in their daily lives. What we observe is that self-confidence develops when we reconnect with our resources, clarify our intentions, and act in a congruent manner.
Here are the most common challenges and concrete approaches to overcoming them.
1. Past experiences that still influence the present
Certain significant experiences—whether personal or professional—leave an emotional mark. Even if the situation has changed, they can continue to limit one's momentum or expression of potential. The work involves recognizing these marks and acting from a more conscious space.
2. Constant comparison and social pressure
Constant exposure to the visible successes of others, especially on social media, can create a feeling of disconnect or impostor syndrome. Comparison erodes confidence, even in competent people.
3. Professional pressure and lack of inner space
When everything is urgent, it becomes difficult to breathe mentally and reconnect with oneself. Doubt then comes not from a lack of ability, but from a lack of inner presence.
4. Difficulty asserting oneself
Saying no, setting boundaries, expressing an opinion, or defending a position requires internal grounding. Without it, the tendency to adapt or hold back takes over, to the detriment of self-esteem.
5. Lack of regular practices to nurture confidence
Confidence is not a fixed trait. It is a state that is strengthened through experience and repetition. Without concrete practices, it remains fragile in the face of stress or change.
1. Reactivating a resource status using NLP
Returning to a moment when we felt aligned, calm, or competent allows us to access an existing resource. It is not about “motivating” ourselves, but rather about rediscovering an internal state that we have already experienced and that can support us in speaking up, making a decision, or having an important conversation. When you feel in the moment, associate it with a specific physical point, e.g., press your right thumb into the palm of your left hand and remember the location, duration, and intensity or an image you associate with it. Cultivate this anchor and it will serve you in times of need.
2. Building trust through precise language
The way we talk to ourselves creates direction.
Saying “I want to have more confidence” remains vague. It is neither defined nor actionable. Precise language allows us to transform an abstract wish into a concrete path.
Two questions from New Code NLP provide this clarity:
What exactly does self-confidence mean to me?
This involves identifying the attitudes, qualities, or internal resources we associate with this term. The definition is personal. The more precise it is, the more targeted the development becomes.
How exactly am I going to achieve this?
This question transforms intention into observable actions aligned with the goal. By doing so, we are not working on confidence in a theoretical way: we are gradually manifesting it through chosen and consistent behaviors.
Clarity → action → experience → confidence.
1. Relive a moment of success in a sensory way
Remembering a moment when we felt confident is useful, but the impact comes from how we revisit that memory. By returning to the energy, rhythm, sensations, context, and inner state of that moment, it becomes alive and available in the present.
The goal is not to analyze it, but to inhabit it again so we can access it when it matters.
2. Formulate what we want to experience rather than what we want to avoid.
Focusing on what we no longer want often keeps our attention on the problem.
Expressing what we want to experience mobilizes the resources needed to achieve it.
This is not a positive or naive attitude, but a clear focus of attention and action.
3. Saying no as an act of clarity and integrity
Saying no does not mean rejecting the other person: it means respecting yourself. A simple no protects your energy, priorities, and inner balance.
This involves:
Saying no reinforces the consistency between what we feel, think, and do—a central pillar of lasting confidence.
Developing confidence is not about becoming someone else.
It is about returning to yourself, clarifying what you want to experience, and acting from a more aligned inner space.
If you would like to explore this path with professional and supportive guidance, we offer sessions tailored to your needs in person in Geneva, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Valais, and Lausanne, as well as online.
We offer a preliminary consultation with no obligation to clarify your goals and see if our support is right for you.
We look forward to accompanying you on this journey.
oraine
