It is well known that “C Students” usually end up being the most successful in life. A lot of this has been attributed in their capability to comprise and reach a middle ground. However, I think a big part of it is how self aware and critical they are and how much they reflect and question their next steps.
In order to understand this, it is important to introduce self awareness arch-nemesis confidence.
Entrepreneurs need to be confident. They are by default optimistic and think that the odds favor them. Napoleon Bonaparte used to believe he was born under a “lucky star”. They usually end up taking initiatives when no one else does. Unfortunately, this also means they end not reflecting enough on their actions and messing up most of the time.
Successful people are the most to be hurt by this. They usually start an initiative since they are confident in life, work, academia, etc.. and then they up their game and go for the next step. Why shouldn’t they? They have always been successful so why would it be different this time? Well, until they crash and fail miserably.
The true remarkable character here is when a person is both confident and self critical. This is very rare and is usually a sign of unique wisdom.
Confidence is hard to learn but I think self criticalness is a skill that can be acquired. It can either be acquired through experience or through building up the habit of questioning, soliciting and acting on advices when considering your next steps.