How to Stay Confident Under Pressure as a Leader

Welcome back to the Live Out Loud show. I'm your host, Brooke Thomas, and guess what? The last episode, we talked about the confidence that you cannot fake. You know, ladies, if you've been around me long enough, I like to go deep fast, no fake around here.

We're not gonna play the whole, you can't fake it till you make it, or you're gonna fake it till you make it, or whatever the statement is. We always say, walk, talk, and act like it's done until it's done, okay? We're not gonna fake anything. We want the kind of confidence that shows up when we're visible, the kind that doesn't hide, the kind that isn't built on performance or approval.

Can I get an amen to that? Today, I want to talk about what happens after that, because confidence doesn't disappear when pressure shows up. It just reveals what your confidence was built on. And leadership will always bring out pressure, pressure to perform, pressure to decide, pressure to expand, pressure to hold things together when things feel uncertain.

So the real question isn't, can I be confident? The question is, can I stay confident when it gets hard? That's what it is. When things get hard, will you stay confident?

When things get hard, will you stay unbreakable, unshakable? I've watched this over and over and over again, not only in my own life, but in tens of thousands of women's lives. I've seen it for 20 years. Some women look confident when they're going to great places and things are going well, right?

When results are coming in, it's like, yeah, I'm confident. When people are affirming us, we're confident. When momentum feels easy, we're confident. But let me tell you something, when the pressure hits, not only in my own life, but I've seen this in so many women, criticism, resistance, a setback, a delay, an unexpected problem, that's when the confidence starts to wobble.

You know what I'm talking about. Not because you're weak, but because the confidence was rooted in the wrong place. Pressure doesn't create insecurity. Pressure exposes insecurity.

And scripture talks about this. In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, we're told to live with unshakable confidence, unshakable, not emotional confidence. I always say, I do not let my emotions run my calendar. I do not let my emotions run my day.

My emotions do not run my business. Now, sometimes my emotions run my relationships, but I work on that, you know? You know, we want to make sure that we have confidence and it's not circumstantial confidence, not confidence that rises and falls with outcomes. We want unshakable confidence, the kind that says, even if this is hard, I'm steady.

Even if I'm going to go through a challenge, I'm steady. Even if this takes time, I'm grounded. Even if I don't see the full picture yet, I trust the one who does. I've had seasons where pressure felt heavy.

Moments where leadership felt so lonely. Moments where decisions carried real weight. Moments where growth stretched me beyond what felt comfortable. And pressure has a way of making everything louder.

You know what I mean? I mean, when we're under pressure, everything feels louder. everything gets squeezed. Fear gets louder.

I don't know about you, but my like nervous system goes on overdrive. This is why I have to go outside a lot of times. I'll take off my shoes. You know they call it grounding but like literally I ground with the Holy Spirit I take off my shoes I walk outside I put my hand on my heart and I like Lord I know you got me and you got this You've got me and you've got this.

I teach all the women that I lead this to because it helps all the little things and the big things help. It's like, okay, you've got me and you've got this. Doubt is what gets louder when you're feeling all those feelings. The opinions of others get louder.

but when you put your hand on your heart and you're like, okay, God, I know you've got me and you've got this, for some reason, it gets softer, all those other things. And in those moments when all those things are allowed, this is the one thing I had to learn. Confidence does not come from controlling the situation. It comes from trusting God in the middle of it.

There were times, and there's still times, where I wanted certainty, clear outcomes, a guarantee that things are going to work out, but God doesn't always give clarity before he gives responsibility, okay? Let me say that again. God does not always give clarity before he gives responsibility. Sometimes he gives responsibility first and confidence is built when you carry it.

This is where being rooted matters, rooted confidence. It doesn't panic when things shift. That's why I'm still working on that. That's why I have to lean into God and say, God, you've got me.

You've got this. It doesn't spiral when plans change. It doesn't crumble when feedback isn't flattering. In 2 Corinthians 4, we're told to fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen.

Pressure pulls your focus outward. Confidence pulls your focus upward. And this is where I want to pause for a moment. because you don't need another hype girl telling you how amazing you are, even though I will because you are amazing.

But listen, I love being someone's hype girl. I will cheer you on all day long, but hype is not the solution to confidence. Hype feels good in the moment, but it doesn't hold you when the pressure hits. That's why I love to go deep fast, especially when you get in the room with me, if you're in my masterminds, if we do live events together or retreats, you know we go deep fast because I will be your hype girl, but I want it to last.

I want you to build real confidence. I want you to activate what's inside. I want you to know what is possible, who you are, and why God's called you to do the thing that you're meant to do, but you've gotta be prepared. You've gotta be in the preparation season to handle the mantle that you're supposed to carry.

So what holds you in that deeply rooted confidence? Rooted so that when things are high, you don't get inflated. And when things are heavy, you don't get shaken. Rooted so that when someone reminds you of who you are, you don't just hear it, you actually know it.

You're the girl that's like, thank you. I teach my daughters, when somebody compliments you, don't say, no, no, no, no. Just say, thank you so much. Thank you so much.

You know, we need to learn to say thank you when somebody tells us something good because we know it's true. Or we know that somebody else is seeing something good in us. Just say thank you, receive it. You know that you know that you know.

That's the difference. And this is where so many women I see lose their footing. They start measuring themselves by outcomes, by numbers, by timelines, by opinions. This is why I combine business and faith.

This is why I don't know how to do business without faith. surround themselves with high leaders and learn from business mentors who always put God first. Inside the Elite Mastermind, you'll experience unmatched confidence, unlimited expansion, and radical accountability because you're not meant to do this alone. You'll get luxury in-person retreats, monthly faith and action calls with me, monthly business breakthrough coaching, a powerful network of women walking in faith and excellence and business training with seven, eight and nine figure experts.

You'll also get access to our million dollar toolkit for scaling your skills and influence. If you're ready to activate your faith, expand your vision and multiply your impact and build Legacy Level Success Without Sacrificing Peace. Head to brookthomas.com backslash mastermind or click the link in the show notes to apply.

I'm excited to connect with you. Because your confidence can become very fragile if you're just focused on business without the faith. Confidence rooted in God is not shaken by results. It's anchored in identity.

This is why every time I talk about my scariest prayer on Instagram, especially, it blows up. Like it goes viral because I always say my scariest prayer is this. I first start off by thanking God. Thank you, God.

This is not the scary part, by the way. I always say, thank you, God, for what you're doing. I thank him in advance for what I've been praying for, where I know I'm going, where my vision is, where my dreams are. And I'm just assuming it's done.

So I'm like, thank you. I cannot wait. This is why we don't fake it till we make it. We walk, talk, and act like it's done until it's done.

But the scary part is I want to make sure I don't get it wrong. I want to be in God's will. Sometimes our flesh takes over. Sometimes we just say what we want.

We think we're going to get it. We get so disappointed when we don't get it, but it was never in the will of God. I don't want anything outside of the will of God because it doesn't work out the way we want to anyway, okay? So I'm like, God, this is the scary part.

If I've got it wrong, if I'm just asking for something, believing for something, and it's not from you and this is in my flesh, take it away and take it away fast. And I'm like, listen, Lord, this is how I'm speaking to him. I'm like, listen, you created me. I'm very impatient.

So take it away fast. I'll know it's from you and we'll be good. It's a win-win. And then I also have to say, okay, but if you're trying to teach me some patience, give me some patience.

If you can't take this away fast and teach me and show me along the way. And I just want you to know that that's how you become like unshaken by results. You have to be anchored in your identity. I had to learn to ask myself this question in seasons of pressure.

Am I reacting to the pressure or am I responding from truth? Because pressure will always try to rush you. You know what I mean, right? The rushed decisions, the rushed confidence, the rushed faith, but rooted, grounded, like, you know, that rooted confidence, it moves with wisdom, not urgency.

A lot of times I'll say, okay, Lord, today, give me eyes to see, ears to hear only what you have for me. I want fresh revelation. I'm expecting fresh revelation, fresh wisdom from you, God. Jeremiah 33, 3 says that God will tell us the things that we do not know.

So every day I'm like, God, I don't know. I don't know what I don't know. So talk to me, tell me and tell the people around me. It's so amazing when you can be around people and have like a spirit to spirit, heart to heart connection because you're praying for them and God's showing up in their life and you're praying for yourself.

And then it's just like a win-win Holy Spirit moment. Like I have those all the time because I'd rather have fresh revelation from God, fresh wisdom from God, be around people that want to grow and understand the vulnerability of you know being confident in God instead of ourselves It so much better It so much pressure by the way It so much pressure to be rooted and confident in only yourself That's why God created us. That's why we have the Holy Spirit inside of us. So if you want to stay confident, under pressure, stop asking, how do I feel?

And start asking, what do I know? I know God called me. I know God equipped me. I know he's faithful.

I know he finishes what he starts. That's unshakable confidence. That is where pressure becomes part of the process. And then you get to the desired outcome.

So where is pressure testing you right now? Where do you feel pressure right now? Is it in your business? Is it in your leadership?

Is it in your visibility? is it in your next level? You know, we are supposed to go to another level until the day we die. Don't be afraid of the next level.

Don't ever think that you've arrived because there's always another level and it's not about striving and grinding. It's about knowing that every time you grow, there's another level and it's exciting. It's also thrilling and it can be challenging, but it's amazing at the same time. Otherwise, life becomes so boring.

When pressure shows up, stop rehearsing fear and start rehearsing truth. Say it out loud. God called me. God is with me.

God is steady even when things feel uncertain. Just get used to saying that out loud. Confidence grows when you anchor yourself and what does not change. And God does not change.

People change. People will disappoint us. We will change. But God doesn't change.

And that's a promise. That's a promise. This is what it looks like to build confidence that lasts, confidence that holds, confidence that stays rooted even when the ground feels shaky. And if this resonated with you, I go so much deeper.

In chapter three, this is my shameless plug for my book, okay? My book is called Activate Your Impact. And in chapter three, I go deep in confidence because I want your confidence to be activated. I want your mother's confidence to be activated.

I want your sister's confidence to be activated. I want your daughter's confidence to be activated. Any woman you know, any girl you know, read chapter three to them or get them this book and tell them that their confidence matters because confidence is not about feeling brave every single day. It's about standing firm when bravery feels costly.

It's when your confidence is rooted in God. That's when pressure doesn't break you. It builds you. This is how you stay confident under pressure.

I hope you enjoyed today's episode. And I just wanna know what you're going to apply to become more confident. And when you start to feel more confident, please tag me on Instagram at Live Out Loud Brooke. Tell me how this episode impacted you.

Tell me how chapter three impacted you. And tell me how your confidence is actually growing your relationships, your business, your faith, all of it. Because I'm rooting for you. I'm not just your hype girl.

I want you to build your confidence. So have a great day. Thank you for listening and share this with anybody that needs to elevate their confidence. That's a wrap on today's episode.

If something resonated with you or stirred in your spirit, I encourage you to share it with somebody who you know needs to hear this message today. And if you're thinking, okay, I'm ready for more, Brooke, I invite you to check out my book, Activate Your Impact on Amazon. This book is a guide to living out loud in your business life and faith. So until next time, thank you so much for listening to the Live Out Loud show.