Description

We're often told to "be more confident" as though confidence is something we can simply decide to have.

But what if confidence isn't something we create?

What if it's something we accumulate?

Every success, failure, difficult conversation, disappointment, risk, recovery, and uncertain moment becomes evidence. Over time, that evidence shapes what we believe about our competence, our capacity, and our ability to handle whatever comes next.

In this solo episode of Deals with Heels, Debra Bowers introduces the concept of Compound Confidence and explores why confidence isn't certainty or optimism. It's the trust that develops when you've accumulated enough evidence to believe you can navigate uncertainty, recover from setbacks, learn, adapt, and keep moving forward.

Debra also shares the deeply personal story of her mother, Juanita, who survived nearly five years after being diagnosed with Stage 3B lung cancer despite initially being given less than a 10% chance of surviving one year. Her experience became a powerful example of how confidence can compound—not only within ourselves, but through the evidence other people accumulate about us.

Key Topics

- Because the experiences we have matter.

- But so does the story we decide those experiences mean.

- What Compound Confidence means

- Why confidence isn't the same as certainty

- How we accumulate evidence about ourselves

- Why recovery can build more confidence than success

- The relationship between competence, capacity, confidence, and trust

- How uncertainty helps us learn to trust ourselves

- Why two people can experience the same setback and carry forward completely different evidence

- How emotional reactions affect the stories we tell ourselves

- Building confidence as we move into higher levels of leadership

- How leaders contribute to the confidence of other people

- Why other people are constantly accumulating evidence about us

- The relationship between confidence and Compound Credibility

- How one person's confidence can become evidence for an entire community

Resources

Connect with Debra Bowers

LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/debra-bowers/

The Human Sales Playbook
https://thegrowthvanguard.com/free-ebook

5 Signs Your Growth Is Breaking
https://5signs.thegrowthvanguard.com/

The Growth Vanguard
https://thegrowthvanguard.com/

Hexagon Media
https://hexagonmedia.net/

Stay Connected with Deals with Heels

If this conversation resonated with you, share it with a leader, founder, or colleague who needs to hear it.

Deals with Heels is where we explore the human side of leadership, growth, sales, decision-making, and the moments that shape who we become as leaders.

Follow the show so you never miss an episode, and if you're enjoying these conversations, please leave a review. Your reviews help more listeners discover the show and support our ability to bring thoughtful, meaningful conversations to a wider audience.

🎙 Follow Deals with Heels on your favorite podcast platform

⭐ Leave a review and help us grow

📢 Share this episode with someone who could benefit from the conversation

Until next time, stand strong in your power—especially when it gets uncomfortable.