Two Lessons for Gaining Confidence at Work: What Earthquakes Teach Us and Why Common Sense Still Matters

Confidence at work isn’t about pretending the ground will never move—it’s about preparing for disruption and trusting the simple wisdom you already have. These 2 articles are from my Linkedin newsletter edition which you can join here for easier access(Go to LinkedIn) .

Article (1) an earthquake metaphor for career resilience (with practical drills to stay ready), and Article (2) the underrated power of common sense for being true to yourself. You’ll leave with a step-by-step plan to gain confidence at work, live authentically, and lead with clarity—plus links to newsletter deep dives for each lesson.

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Why Confidence Feels Shaky in Today’s Workplace (and what to do about it)

The modern workplace can feel like a fault line: restructures, AI shifts, leadership changes, client churn, deadlines that slide without warning. If your confidence dips when things lurch sideways, that’s not a personal failing—it’s a predictable response to uncertainty.

This article blends two perspectives that reinforce each other:

• Article 1: Earthquake readiness as a metaphor for career resilience—how to gain confidence at work when change is sudden.
• Article 2: Common sense as a daily practice—how being true to yourself builds calm authority and trust.

Use the table of contents to skim, or read straight through for the full arc.

You waana grow? Then read more on How to Gain Confidence at Work by Being True to Yourself

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Article 1 — Earthquake Readiness: How to Gain Confidence at Work When Everything Feels Unstable

The Earthquake Metaphor: Expect tremors, prepare, stay flexible

Earthquakes are unpredictable. The same is true for many career jolts: a project gets shelved, a manager moves on, a tool you rely on becomes obsolete. Countries in seismic zones don’t wait for certainty—they design for instability. Buildings sway instead of snapping, schools run drills, and people keep go-bags with essentials.

Confidence is similar. You don’t need guarantees; you need preparedness + flexibility. When you plan for tremors, you move from fear to focus.

Career Preparedness Framework (to gain confidence at work during sudden change)

1) Strengthen your foundation with continuous learning

how to build confidence at work through continuous learning

• Pick one competency per quarter. Don’t boil the ocean. Choose the next most valuable skill (e.g., data storytelling, stakeholder mapping, prompt design for AI tools, conflict navigation).
• Create a practice loop. Learn → apply within 7 days → get feedback → refine.
• Document your “before and after.” A simple log of improvements becomes proof, which boosts confidence and supports performance reviews.

2) Run “career drills” so change doesn’t rattle you

Ways to prepare for sudden changes at work

• Scenario rehearsal (10 minutes/week):
  • If my manager leaves next month, I will…
  • If our budget is cut 30%, I will…
  • If AI automates 40% of my tasks, I will…
• Micro-drills: Practice a 60-second status summary, a 2-minute project pitch, and a 3-question discovery call. Repetition reduces panic and increases perceived leadership.

3) Anchor decisions to values—authenticity is your base isolation

how being true to yourself helps you gain confidence at work
Values act like base isolators under a high-rise: they absorb shock. Identify your top three (e.g., clarity, respect, reliability) and translate them into behaviors under pressure:

• Clarity → “I state trade-offs directly.”
• Respect → “I listen before I argue.”
• Reliability → “I make fewer promises—and meet every one.”

Earthquake-Ready Mindset: Calm is a habit you practice

The “PAUSE → SCAN → ACT” loop for unstable moments

• PAUSE (5 seconds): Breathe and name what’s happening. (“We lost a client. I feel a surge of anxiety.”)
• SCAN (15 seconds): What’s still true? What options exist? Who can help?
• ACT (next step only): Draft an email, schedule a huddle, or clarify scope. Confidence comes from visible progress, not perfect plans.

One example being The flexible specialist

A product analyst realizes AI can generate baseline dashboards. Instead of resisting, she doubles down on storytelling and decision design. She becomes the person leaders call to translate data into action. Prepared + flexible → more confidence, more impact.

Quick Wins You Can Do This Week

Monday – Map your tremors

List the top 3 uncertainties you face. For each, write a first step you can take within 24 hours.

Wednesday – Skill practice

Block 30 minutes to practice a micro-drill (pitch, summary, or negotiation line). Hit record on your phone; review once.

Friday – Values in action

Pick one tough conversation you handled this week. Note where you acted from your values—and where you’ll improve next time.

👉 Want the “earthquake drills” playbook? I’ve expanded this in my newsletter. [Read the full version here].

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Article 2 — Common Sense at Work: The Most Underrated Way to Live Authentically (and be trusted)

Why we overlook common sense (even when it’s right in front of us)

Work can reward complexity: frameworks, jargon, slide-ware. But common sense—the plain, practical wisdom we all recognize—often delivers results faster with fewer politics. It also aligns naturally with being true to yourself, which is where calm confidence comes from.

Common Sense Habits that Build Everyday Confidence

1) Listen before you decide

Common sense says: understand first, then optimize.

• Ask, “What problem is painful right now?”
• Reflect back what you heard (one line).
• Propose the smallest useful next step.
  simple ways to gain confidence at work by listening first

2) Make fewer promises—and keep every one

Trust compounds when your word is gold.

• Replace “I’ll try” with “I’ll deliver X by Friday 3pm.”
• If scope changes, renegotiate early, not late.
  how keeping promises at work builds credibility and confidence

3) Prefer the simplest workable solution

Before you spin up a six-step program, ask: What would a thoughtful beginner do?

• Ship a one-page brief before a 30-slide deck.
• Pilot with one team before a company-wide rollout.
• Automate repetitive steps only after you stabilize the manual process.
  use common sense at work to reduce overthinking and act confidently

4) Tell the truth kindly (especially when it’s inconvenient)

Authenticity without empathy is bluntness; empathy without authenticity is avoidance. Common sense sits in the middle: clear + kind.

• “I want this to succeed. Here’s where I’m concerned… and what I propose.”
  being true to yourself at work without sounding harsh

The Psychology Behind Common Sense and Authentic Leadership

Heuristics you can trust (with guardrails)

We all use mental shortcuts. The trick is to choose reliable ones and set boundaries.

• Default to clarity. If the message is muddled, you’ll rework it anyway.
• Default to iteration. Small tests beat big bets when uncertainty is high.
• Default to transparency. Light prevents rumor mills.

Authenticity reduces cognitive load

When your inner script matches your outer behavior, you stop spending energy on performance. That spare energy fuels focus, creativity, and poise, which read as confidence to everyone around you.

Common Sense to Calm the Noise

Meeting reset

Open with, “What outcome do we need in 30 minutes?” Park everything else.

Decision rule

If two options are equally good, pick the simpler one with the faster feedback loop.

Conflict de-escalation

Name the shared goal first, then the disagreement, then the smallest test to resolve it.

👉 Curious about the five real reasons people don’t act with common sense? I share them in my newsletter. [Join here].

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Bringing the Two Articles Together: Preparedness × Simplicity × Authenticity

The Confidence Equation (what actually builds calm authority)

Preparedness (Earthquake lesson)

You can’t predict shocks, but you can practice responses. That practice creates a body memory of calm.

Simplicity (Common sense lesson)

You can’t control complexity, but you can choose the shortest honest path that solves the problem.

Authenticity (The glue)

Values make your behavior consistent under pressure. People trust consistency; trust looks and feels like confidence.

9-Step Action Plan to Gain Confidence at Work (Skimmable + practical)

Weekly rhythm

1. Plan one drill. (Status summary, pitch, tough question.)
2. Ship one simple deliverable. (One-pager > deck.)
3. Keep one high-trust promise. (Name it Monday; deliver it Friday.)

Monthly rhythm

4. Learn one upgrade skill. Put it to work immediately.
5. Run one scenario rehearsal. Write the first action you’d take.
6. Capture one proof point. Screenshot, metric, or testimonial.

Quarterly rhythm

7. Values audit. Where did you act on your top three? Where did you drift?
8. Relationship map refresh. Who depends on you? Who do you depend on? What clarity is missing?
9. Confidence retrospective. What felt shaky? Which routine helped? What will you double down on?

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FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions About Confidence, Authenticity, and Common Sense at Work

What’s the fastest way to gain confidence at work when I feel uncertain?

Start with visible progress: deliver one clear, simple output within 48 hours (a brief, a decision log, a prototype). Progress beats perfection for confidence.

How can I be true to myself without hurting my career?

Anchor tough messages in shared goals and kind candor: “I want us to win. Here’s what I see, here’s my concern, here’s a small test.”

What if my boss prefers complex solutions?

Offer both: “Here’s the simple path that gets us a result this week. If that fails, here’s the scaled approach.” Common sense first, complexity as a fallback.

I’m not naturally calm. Can I learn this?

Yes. Calm is a trainable output of routines: micro-drills, breathing pauses, clarity scripts, and values-based decisions.

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Conclusion: Confidence = Readiness + Simplicity + Truth

Confidence doesn’t require guarantees. It requires designing for instability, choosing the simplest honest step, and acting from who you really are—especially when the ground moves.

• Earthquakes teach us to prepare.
• Common sense teaches us to keep it simple.
• Authenticity keeps us steady.

Put them together and you’ll gain confidence at work, live authentically, and lead with clarity—no matter how often the landscape shifts.

Confidence is what happens when readiness meets simplicity and authenticity. No matter how much the landscape shifts, these three elements will keep you steady. Get more tools to build your confidence by joining the newsletter today.