Avoid Belittling Your Own Views to Become Less Passive and Build Confidence
When you express an opinion that you think cannot be immediately accepted, it is tempting to slander it. However, the more you undermine your own ideas before sharing them, the less confident you appear.
As the psychology blog Psychology Today points out, qualifying each of your beliefs with phrases like “I could be wrong” or “I’m not an expert” does not make your audience more receptive. They just undermine your confidence even before you even share your faith:
Starting with the assumption that you are wrong decreases the likelihood that you are right. You literally stop them from accepting what you have to say.
While it is okay at times to discuss topics in which you have no experience, qualifying each of your opinions in this way is not constructive. If you are confident enough to voice your opinion, it is safe to assume that you are confident enough to say it without refuting it.
10 Things Passive People Say | Psychology today