What Eminem Knows About Being Confident That You Don’t

Written by Sean Platt - 21 Comments
Categories: confidence, self improvement

Photo credit: Celebrity Jigsaw

It’s easy to hate Eminem.

For some, it’s just as easy to love him.

Eminem exploded into the mainstream with The Slim Shady LP in 1998. With virtuosity in his rhyme schemes, and a delivery pole dancing with precision, Em flirted with the suburbs in a way hip-hop had never managed before.

Through it all was Em’s incessant swagger.

Love him or hate him, Eminem has all the qualities allowing you to look life in the eye and demand the best.You don’t have to use a lot of potty talk or aim a metric ton of adolescent one-liners at everyone who’s ever made you angry, but if you follow these five qualities, you, too, can have some of Eminem’s confidence.

1) You’re the only one with your story. Don’t be too timid to tell it.

Don’t try to fit in when you can do what no one else can – tell your story from your perspective. You can’t be friends with everyone; the world’s wind will never crackle with that much kumbaya. But you can be your most authentic self, and when you are you will draw the right people to you, a whole lot easier.

Em delivers his story without flinching. His delivery makes some people angry and others indifferent. This is fine. Most of the offended would never have understood him to begin with, but there are countless people who connect with his stories, understand his pain, identify with his struggles, and appreciate his honesty.

Your story won’t bond you with everyone, but it is yours. And when it finds the right ears, it will allow you to forge a deeper connection than otherwise possible.

2) Be Who You Are

Be true to your values and voice. Don’t break the layer of who you are, just to be more popular. It’s difficult to feel truly confident behind a facade that could shatter at any moment.

Eminem looks life in the eye and delivers verdict without apology. Songs such as “The Way I Am” or “Who Knew” see him addressing critics and the media head on.

Around the wrong people, you’ll feel you’re wearing someone else’s tan. Surrounded by personalities who encourage your true self, the better you’ll blossom.

3) Use Honesty as an Asset

It’s easy to look at others and believe they have it easy. But everyone struggles with fear and vulnerability. If someone claims to live in the absence of struggle then they’re either telling a half truth or a whole lie. Life is filled with obstacles and it’s far more honorable to praise the crushing of barrier and boundary than it is to never have them at all.

Eminem never seems afraid to speak his personal truth. He communicates from his core, without wavering, unafraid to look weak or petty or sad.

We tell lies when we live in fear. Fear of what we don’t know, what others will think, or perhaps what they’ll discover. Yet every lie leaving our lips emboldens the worst inside us. It’s a hard fall, tripping over your own lie. Honesty is a valuable asset, affording you an abundance of confidence.

4) Let Your Instincts be Your Guide

Cold logic is powerful, but sometimes it’s easiest finding inner confidence when moving away from calculation and toward a hunch. Trust yourself enough to rely on instinct, and you will coax the confidence inside you.

If Eminem had listened to critics or the pre-Slim Shady mainstream, he never would have exploded or forged such a genuine bond with his audience.

You know more than you may think. The chapters of your life have sharpened your instincts. Don’t be afraid to use them, and enjoy the surprise of seeing how much your confidence will grow.

Eminem has winning confidence, but only because he uses his flaws as fuel. You’re no different. Use the best inside of you to project as much confidence as possible.

Sean Platt is a content marketing specialist and better life blogger. Follow him on Twitter.

Don’t Forget To Follow PickTheBrain On Twitter!

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  • http://lookingtobusiness.com Daniel M. Wood

    I love that you chose Eminem as the role model for this article.
    He truly exhibits the traits you describe and that is the reason he is famous.

    Confidence is the one key to success, if you look successful and sound successful, you probably are successful and doors will open for you.

  • http://igniteyouressence.com Justin Popovic

    As a fan of Eminem I found this post really interesting. I love studying and analyzing successful people to see the traits that make them successful. His confidence is undeniable.

    The end of your article was the best. “You know more than you may think.” I have be SOOOO guilty of this in the past and only recently have accepted that I have a lot to share and many people want to hear that story. Many people sell their life experiences short and fail to see the real lessons they have learned. The more authentic you can be, the easier these lessons will come out. You just have to be prepared to step out of your comfort zone and tell some stuff about yourself that you may have not wanted to share in the past.

  • http://www.splitcents.com Split Cents

    Love #3 – Honesty as an asset. Maybe Eminem uses honesty as much as a weapon as an asset? But I think just about everybody has (or will have) a life experience where integrity and honesty was the only thing that saved them!

  • http://survivinglimbo.blogspot.com Emily

    Awesome post! Rap is not my favorite musical genre, but I’ve always like Eminem for just the reasons you stated. He “keeps it real” and doesn’t worry about what other people think. I think it takes guts to be yourself. Most of us hide behind roles…we act one way with our family, another at work, etc. Eminem is just…Eminem.

  • http://thedropoutkid.com/blog/ Thedropoutkid

    1) You’re the only one with your story. Don’t be too timid to tell it.

    Say no more!

  • http://www.milesnice.com/eminems-secrets-regarding-confidence.html Eminem’s Secrets Regarding Confidence

    [...] Via pickthebrain. com [...]

  • http://www.cultivatingheroes.com Jarrod – Cultivating Heroes

    No matter how you look at it it really is a good set of actions.

    There is no reason to hide except for the reasons we make up for ourselves.

  • A Perspective

    “But everyone struggles with fear and vulnerability. If someone claims to live in the absence of struggle then they’re either telling a half truth or a whole lie.”

    I question the intent or mental depth of anyone who believes they know about or are entitled to make declarations about “everyone” based on only their own brain and experiences. Almost 7 Billion Individuals on Earth.

    Honesty is an excuse not to be Truthful. Everyone is honest, ask anyone. Honesty is a lie.
    Honesty = It was an accident.
    Truthful = I was careless or I was not conscious, awake or aware.

    Courage or Truth does not hide behind tattoos or behind piercings. Headhunters had tattoos and piercings before the frontal lobe evolved. This allows Earthlings to decorate their brain instead of giving their body pain to punish themselves.

    Monkey See Monkey Do Piercing and Tattoo Inc.

    Eminem has written some very catchy songs though I do not believe Eminem is the best image to use as a role model for children or for adults.

    There is a difference between an individual of permanent calm confidence based on truth in the center of their brain or a ghetto image based on emotional and lyrical distortion; a person hiding mental problems behind foul language or negative lyrical seeds that are being inserted into other peoples brains.

    There has to be a better confidence and truth role model to use for society than Eminem.

  • http://www.schoolgrantsresource.com SchoolGrants

    Fantastic post and completeky true.. Stay true to your self, thats the cey to confidence.

  • Chris

    I disagree with your example identifying why honesty is a lie and truthful is not a lie.

    You say that if you ask anyone if they are honest they will lie and say yes. What happens if you ask anyone if they are truthful? If they say yes then aren’t they lying. Therefore, truthful = lie.

    Also, I found it rather funny that just one paragraph after you get on your soap box about making declarations with “everyone” you go on to make your own declaration using everyone. “Everyone is honest, ask anyone.” Perhaps I just misread your intent…

  • http://www.upgradereality.com/great-books-to-read Diggy

    Awesome post!
    I’ve been listening to his latest song ‘Not Afraid’ for the last week on repeat. I don’t love all Em’s music but alot of it I really enjoy listening to.

    Cheers
    Diggy

  • http://www.motoredbikes.com/member.php?u=11285 ZX-14 lady

    Excellent post thanks!

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    Hope it will always be alive!

  • http://www.zenecherub.com/2010/08/02/learning-confidence/ the ArmChair Thoughts – learning Confidence

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  • http://tarasevich.wordpress.com Alexey

    That guy expressed his ideas in quite unclear way. Thus it’s very difficult to polemize with him. His sounds like “I dislike Eminem thus I’m not going to agree with you”. I absolutely dislike rap, hip-hop etc. Though agree with the message: be honest, speak out your exprience and you will find YOUR audience to share that experience with.

  • http://lookingtobusiness.com/regular-mistakes/the-key-to-success-confidence Looking to Business

    The Key To Success; Confidence…

    Hello and thanks for visiting. To be successful it first takes that you know that you are going to be successful. Setting goals and working towards them daily, is a prerequisite. Once you know you will succeed you start to act that way. You start to st…

  • http://vkusom.ru/ Vantil

    cool

  • Freddy

    Around the wrong people, you’ll feel you’re wearing someone else’s tan. Surrounded by personalities who encourage your true self, the better you’ll blossom.

    Man if i could i would echo that a thousand times.. So many people including myself(at one time). Live a life that pleases those around us, based soley on FEAR.. How many more GREAT LEADERS are there in this world that see themselves as not fit to be what life HAS CHOSEN them to be? An ambassador to make the world a better place

  • Michael

    Where’s the 5th quality?

  • http://flawlessconfidence.com Martin K.

    Nice post. Being true to yourself is extremely important if you want to feel confident and live a happy life. Live by your own rules and values, not by rules and values of someone else.