Confidence and Self-Efficacy Assessment: A Coaching Self-Check

Confidence is often misunderstood as feeling certain, fearless or naturally outgoing. From a coaching perspective, a more useful question is: Do you believe you can take useful action, learn from feedback and recover when things do not go perfectly?

This assessment focuses on practical self-efficacy—the belief that you can organize and carry out actions needed for a specific challenge. It is not a personality test or a measure of your worth.

How to Complete the Assessment

Choose one area where you want greater confidence, such as leadership, public speaking, career change, fitness, boundaries, study, relationships or a new skill.

My focus area: ____________________

Rate each statement from 1 to 5: 1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree.

Part 1: Belief in Action

1. I believe I can take the first step even if I do not feel fully ready.
2. I can identify actions that are within my control.
3. I can make progress without knowing exactly how everything will turn out.
4. I am willing to practise rather than waiting to feel confident first.

Part 2: Skills and Evidence

5. I can name skills I already have that are relevant to this challenge.
6. I can identify past situations in which I learned something difficult.
7. I know which skill gap I need to work on next.
8. I can separate “I am inexperienced” from “I am incapable.”

Part 3: Response to Mistakes

9. I can make a mistake without treating it as proof that I am a failure.
10. I can use feedback without automatically becoming defensive or discouraged.
11. I usually recover after disappointment.
12. I can adjust my approach when the first strategy does not work.

Part 4: Social Confidence

13. I can ask questions when I do not know something.
14. I can request help without seeing it as weakness.
15. I can express a different opinion respectfully.
16. I can tolerate some disapproval when acting according to my values.

Part 5: Self-Talk and Perspective

17. My inner dialogue is challenging but not routinely insulting.
18. I can notice when I am predicting failure without evidence.
19. I can recognize progress that is smaller than the final outcome.
20. I judge my performance more by evidence than by one emotional moment.

Scoring

Total range: 20–100.

These score ranges are for coaching reflection only. They are not diagnostic or standardized psychological cutoffs.

Build an Evidence File

Confidence grows more reliably when it is linked to evidence.

• Three things I have learned successfully before:
• Three strengths I can use in this situation:
• One person who has seen me handle difficulty well:
• One piece of positive feedback I tend to dismiss:
• One recent example of progress:

Separate Fear From Ability

Complete the following:

• What I am afraid might happen: ____________________
• What evidence supports that fear: ____________________
• What evidence does not support it: ____________________
• If the feared outcome happened, what could I do next? ____________________
• What action is still worth taking? ____________________

Create a Confidence Ladder

Choose five steps from easiest to hardest.

1. Very small practice: ____________________
2. Low-risk practice: ____________________
3. Moderate challenge: ____________________
4. Real-world stretch: ____________________
5. Larger challenge: ____________________

Do not jump automatically to step five. Repeated successful practice at lower levels can create useful evidence and skill.

Feedback Plan

Choose feedback that is specific and actionable.

• Who can give me useful feedback?
• What exact question will I ask?
• What would I like feedback on: preparation, clarity, skill, communication, follow-through or another behaviour?
• How will I avoid treating one opinion as a verdict on my worth?

Seven-Day Action Experiment

• One action I will take before I feel fully confident: ____________________
• When I will do it: ____________________
• What success means: completing the action, not controlling the outcome
• What I will learn afterward: ____________________

Research across behaviour-change studies suggests that increasing self-efficacy can contribute to stronger intentions and behaviour, although confidence works best when paired with concrete action and realistic planning.

Matching Worksheet

Ready to build confidence through evidence and graded action? Use the Confidence-Building Worksheet.

Useful Internal Guides

• Self-Esteem and Inner Strength
• Self-Doubt: Signs and Daily Habits for Clarity
• Progress Over Perfectionism

Key Takeaways

• Confidence does not require certainty.
• Action can come before confidence.
• Past learning and small wins provide evidence of capability.
• Mistakes are information, not proof of personal inadequacy.
• Build confidence in a specific area rather than trying to feel confident about everything.

References

• Sheeran P et al. Effects of attitudes, norms and self-efficacy on intentions and behaviour
• Koestner R et al. Self-concordance, implementation intentions and personal goal progress

Disclaimer: This assessment is for coaching, self-help and personal-development purposes only. It is not a diagnostic test for anxiety, depression, trauma, social anxiety, personality disorders or any other medical or mental-health condition. If low confidence is accompanied by persistent distress, severe avoidance, major changes in mood, panic, trauma symptoms, self-harm thoughts or significant difficulty functioning, discuss your situation with a qualified medical or mental-health provider. Do not use this assessment in place of professional evaluation or treatment.