I rather liked Mark McGuinness‘ thought: 5 Reasons Why Enthusiasm is Better than Confidence He says
As long as you’re focused on ‘being confident’ you are the focus of attention. And when it’s all about you, it’s very easy to get caught up in self-doubt (”Am I really up to this? Will I be able to do it?”).
I like the irony there.
Update: I also enjoyed Mark’s podcast interview with Mark Earls This led me to look up references to tacit interactions: essentially, a McKinsey idea that focusses on the complexity of knowledge work and confirms the danger of pursuing efficiency in many contexts. (See this CIO magazine article for more on that). Mark’s very keen on people getting clear about the purpose and beliefs driving a business. He’s also a big advocate of treating the people who work for you as volunteers, and following the principle of invitation rather than compulsion.
That notion of invitation is a key principle in open space facilitation.
