The Leadership Hike: Why Trusting Yourself is the Toughest Trail

In my work with teams, I often emphasize the importance of trust—especially vulnerability-based trust—where members can admit mistakes, ask for help, and feel safe sharing their perceived weaknesses. But we don’t talk about another aspect of trust enough: trusting ourselves.

For leaders managing both personal and professional responsibilities, self-trust is the foundation of their leadership and personal growth. Trusting yourself isn’t just about competence or confidence. It’s deeper. It’s about silencing that inner critic, overcoming self-doubt, and believing you can navigate whatever challenges come your way. This is a lesson I’ve learned personally, having spent a portion of my corporate career doubting my capabilities, even when my results told a different story. I estimate I spent 5 of my 25 years in corporate America questioning whether I was good enough. I doubted myself more than I trusted myself—and that self-doubt robbed me of opportunities to reach my full potential.

I’ve learned that trusting yourself is an ongoing practice. Recently, this concept became clear while hiking in Colorado with my husband. Hiking is a newer hobby for me, and while I’m not tackling the “14ers” as my family does, I’ve let them push me to more challenging hikes. This past weekend, we embarked on a difficult trail—one that felt more like rock climbing at times than simply hiking.

As I climbed, I found myself wondering: What’s harder, going up or coming down? For me, going up feels more controlled and more predictable. It’s tough, but I can stop, breathe, reorient, and feel confident about where to place my next step. But on the way down, I realized that trust plays a much bigger role.

When hiking down a steep trail, especially where the footing is uncertain, you don’t have the luxury of pausing with each step. You have to trust yourself. You have to trust where you place your feet, that you can navigate the terrain, and that even if you stumble, you’ll catch yourself before tumbling down the mountain. It’s a moment-to-moment practice of believing in your ability to manage the challenge.

Why Self-Trust is Essential for Leadership Success

Here are three reasons why hiking down a steep trail requires trust in yourself—reasons that also apply to leadership:

1. You Can’t Control Every Step
   Going downhill, you have to surrender some control. The momentum carries you, and you can’t always stop to check every footfall. Similarly, in leadership, you can’t control every variable. Decisions, unexpected challenges, and uncertainty will always be part of the journey. Trusting yourself means believing you can still make the right moves even if you can’t see the full path. Self-trust is about embracing the unknown and having confidence in your ability to adapt as you go.
2. You Must Be Willing to Make Mistakes
   Hiking down a tough trail means accepting that you might slip or stumble. In leadership, too, mistakes are inevitable. But self-trust allows you to move forward despite that. It’s the belief that mistakes don’t define your value or capability. Instead, they become part of your learning. If you trust yourself, you’ll take calculated risks and push past the fear of failure, knowing that you’ll be able to recover and move on.
3. You Have to Keep the Momentum
   Once you start the descent, it’s much harder to stop. You must keep moving, adjusting as needed, and trust that your next step will be solid. In leadership, momentum is key. Even when the path feels shaky, you have to keep moving forward. Trust in yourself creates the flow that allows you to maintain progress even when the path isn’t clear. It’s about staying adaptable, resourceful, and resilient.

Just like hiking down that steep trail, trusting yourself in leadership requires intention and practice. It’s not always easy, but the more you rely on self-trust, the more confident you’ll become in navigating challenges and embracing opportunities. So, how do we strengthen this vital trust in ourselves? Here are three ways to get started.

How to Strengthen Your Trust in Yourself

Building self-trust doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a skill that requires practice and patience. Here are three ways to deepen your trust in yourself:

1. Reflect on Past Successes: One of the most effective ways to build trust in yourself is to reflect on past moments when you faced uncertainty and still succeeded. Revisit those challenges you overcame and remind yourself of your ability to navigate difficult situations. Let those moments fuel your belief in your current abilities.
2. Embrace Imperfection: Self-trust isn’t about being perfect; it’s about knowing that you'll be okay even when things don’t go according to plan. Permit yourself to make mistakes, and instead of being hard on yourself, view them as opportunities for growth. This will free you from the fear of failure and help you build trust in your resilience.
3. Practice Self-Compassion: Being kind to yourself is a cornerstone of self-trust. When the inner critic starts to creep in, counter it with self-compassion. Remind yourself that everyone stumbles and that it’s part of the process. The more you practice self-compassion, the more you’ll quiet that inner critic and strengthen your belief in yourself.

Trust in yourself allows you to fully step into your potential as a leader. It gives you the courage to navigate difficult paths, the resilience to bounce back from mistakes, and the momentum to keep going when things get tough. Like hiking down that steep trail, your leadership journey will have moments when the footing feels uncertain. But with self-trust, you can keep moving forward—step by step, building confidence and flow along the way.

If you’re ready to explore how trusting yourself can help you reach your full potential, let’s talk.  Sometimes, all it takes is the right support to unlock what’s already within you!