Maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom
Maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom is vital if you're a young female lawyer. Why do you need to focus on maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom? Because it's very easy to feel intimidated by being there. If as a consequence of feeling intimidated your self-confidence drops your skills may suffer.
Some years ago I observed court proceedings several times as part of my work with the magistrates in the Children's Court. There was no doubt that court proceedings could be intimidating, whether it be the court layout, the seating, the rituals, the hierarchy, the police, the judges, the language, or some other aspect. Maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom is not always easy.
It came as no surprise to me then when a very smart and successful lawyer asked me to help her in maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom.
It turned out that she was successful in maintaining self-confidence, except when she was in front of one specific male judge who seemed particularly harsh and ruthless towards her. Rather than maintaining self-confidence she left feeling foolish. Even though she was competent, he seemed to tear strips off her for any reason he could find, or no reason at all.
It was very important that she understood what triggered her loss of confidence in the courtroom and that she could learn to prevent this from happening. It was also important that if she did accidentally become intimidated that she could reverse this quickly and return to having self-confidence. She needed to be successful at maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom no matter who or what she was confronted with.
There were many possible ways that we could tackle this problem, and we looked at it from various aspects. However, for this article let me focus on just one key strategy she used her to overcome the loss of confidence.
There are many techniques you can learn about maintaining self-confidence when speaking out at work and addressing people. Both the technique used with this lawyer and several other techniques are explained and demonstrated on Rachel's 2 CD set: "Confidence for women in public speaking". Click here to obtain your copy.
Maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom in a blue sequined dress.
While I was exploring ways to help Chrissie (not her real name) in maintaining her self-confidence I asked her what she thought of the judge.
"He is an ogre" she exclaimed, "he's big and towers over me puffing and grunting."
"You seem to have a strong memory of him in your mind."
"Oh yes, I see a bleak, grey and gloomy picture of the courtroom with him in it whenever I think of him", she answered.
"Are you in the picture?"
"Oh yes", she said on reflection, "I'm a flustered little person shaking while he's towering over me."
"Oh my, no wonder you have problems maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom, is this the picture you carry in your head whenever you know he is the presiding judge?"
"I hadn't thought of it before but now you say that yes it is. I dread him. As soon as I know he's on duty then I'm already sweating. I have no chance of maintaining self-confidence in the courtroom as I haven't even walked in the door with it."
It's clear what Chrissie needs. She needs a better picture! Yes, maintaining self-confidence can be as simple as that, she needs to get a better picture and replace the grim one with it.
I asked Chrissie to bring to mind images of times when she was happy and full of self-confidence. While she was describing these there was one where she seemed particularly vibrant as she spoke.
It was a time when she went out at night with friends wearing a bright blue sequined dress and high heels. She was walking briskly and swinging her handbag in the air, feeling energetic and happy. She was having no problems maintaining self-confidence at all, in fact she was buzzing with it.
I encouraged her to get to know this image well and to replay it in her mind until the self-confidence flowed throughout her whole body.
Next she learned how to use this image for maintaining self-confidence in front of the judge. She could hardly turn up in court in a blue sequined dress, could she? No, she didn't have to do that. All she had to do in her mind was to see herself standing in front of the judge and replace all the details of her grim image with all the details of her self-confidence snapshot.
She imagined herself walking into the courtroom swinging her handbag, wearing her blue dress and walking briskly, full of energy. She saw herself in sparkling blue clothes standing in front of the judge and enjoying the feeling of her feet in the high heels. She sensed that her friends were in court with her. And, just because it made it really enjoyable, she imagined herself swinging her bag in the air while the judge was talking.
It worked. Next time she went in front of that particular judge she'd had that image in her mind all the way there and when she walked in, and maintaining her self-confidence was easy. The blue sequins made the day. And the grumpy judge never knew!
Self-confidence is in the mind and you can put it there.
What you think, imagine and do IN ADVANCE of speaking in court is very important. When you practise self-confidence in advance you have far more chance of maintaining self-confidence in front of the judge, any judge, any time. Self-confidence is in the mind. Have you put it there?
For other examples of women lawyers and how they may build confidence watch our video: How to be assertive asking questions.
Tell us your courtroom experiences - how good are you at maintaining self-confidence?
Written by Rachel Green. Speaker | Trainer | Coach | Author.
Rachel is an award-winning communication specialist who has worked with men and women in several law firms including Freehills, Jackson MacDonald, Minter Ellison, Blake Dawson and more. If you would like her to coach you in maintaining self-confidence, click here for full details or email rachel@confident-woman.com.au
She is also the author of "Confidence for women in public speaking". Click here to obtain your copy and hear Chrissie's technique in action.
Copyright Confident Woman Australia, 2009.
NB: Any information contained on this site is not provided as an alternative to the obtaining of psychological advice from a appropriately qualified practitioner.
Rachel Green
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