How to Rebuild Your Confidence

How to Rebuild Your Confidence After Redundancy, Change or a New Role

How do you regain confidence when it’s been knocked by a restructure or workplace change? Confidence can be elusive.

You may normally feel moderately confident, yet find that redundancy, a restructure, a new team or a step into a more senior role has suddenly made you question yourself.

That can feel confusing – particularly when a lack of confidence isn’t normal for you. It can be even more confronting if your already low confidence plummets further.

Experiencing a temporary loss of confidence doesn’t mean you have always lacked it, nor does it mean your capability has disappeared.

Every time we step up or experience a significant change, we may need to reconsider what confidence looks like at this stage – and what will help us rebuild it.

Your confidence may be affected by:

• Redundancy or retrenchment
• A change in role or workplace
• Moving into a new team
• A change in professional status
• Relocating to a new community
• Stepping into leadership
• Taking on greater responsibility
• Working in an unfamiliar environment
• Developing skills you haven’t yet mastered
• Receiving difficult feedback
• Being unsuccessful in applications or interviews

A new role can be particularly challenging. You were appointed because of what you have already demonstrated, but you’re also expected to grow into responsibilities you haven’t handled before.

Feeling uncertain while you develop doesn’t mean you’re an imposter. It means you’re learning.

Confidence influences how you communicate, make decisions and respond to opportunities. It affects how you present yourself in interviews, contribute in the boardroom, speak on stage, lead your team and articulate the value you bring.

When confidence has taken a knock, you may begin playing smaller than your capability. You might avoid opportunities, overthink decisions, speak less in important meetings or assume that other people are more qualified than you.

Rebuilding confidence isn’t about pretending to feel certain or repeating positive statements you don’t believe.

It involves reconnecting with the evidence of who you are and what you’ve already achieved.

This may include:

• Recognising the strengths you take for granted
• Capturing your achievements and STAR stories
• Separating your identity from a role that has ended
• Understanding which parts of the situation were outside your control
• Identifying what you still need to learn
• Taking small actions that rebuild trust in yourself
• Practising how you communicate your value
• Creating a clear plan for what comes next
• Working with someone who can see capabilities you may temporarily have forgotten

The capability is often still there. It needs to be recognised, articulated and used again.

I work with leaders and professionals who want to regain their confidence during or after change. Together, we identify what has affected it, reconnect them with the evidence of their ability and create practical steps that help them move forward.

Why does this matter?

Because restored confidence can lead to better interviews, stronger leadership, more suitable career opportunities and wiser decisions about your work and life.

Imagine looking back in five years and saying:

“I’m so glad I rebuilt my confidence – because it shifted EVERYTHING”

I’m Jill Hutchison, an executive and career coach, leadership facilitator and thinking partner. I help people regain clarity, recognise their value and move forward with greater confidence and momentum.