According to Osho, when you throw away your so‑called self‑confidence, you drop a fake, ego-made mask that drains energy and keeps you tense. In that emptying, your real self can be discovered, and with it authentic confidence arises effortlessly—like a shadow you cannot lose, manage, or display. Only the false can be discarded; the real simply is.
Stop pretending to be confident, find your real self, and true confidence shows up by itself.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Tao The Pathless Path Vol 2 · Discourse 8
1977-03-04 · Buddha Hall · English
Should I throw away all my self-confidence?
DON'T think you can do it, because you don't have any. What you call self-confidence is just a lack of it, hence you need it. A man of real self-confidence never carries so much luggage. Why should he carry it? Why should he be concerned about self-confidence? He has it. Nobody can rob him of it, nobody can steal it. There is no way of losing it, you will not need to carry it. When you carry it you show only one thing -- you don't have it. People who don't have any self-confidence create a false self-confidence as a substitute. They are trembling inside, they are afraid inside. Deep down is cowardice but on the surface they pretend that they are brave people, very courageous. Deep down is ignorance but on the surface they are very knowledgeable. Deep down they don't know anything and on the surface they are…Read the full discourse →
The Shadow Of The Whip · Discourse 22
1976-12-01 · Chuang Tzu Auditorium · English
The disappearing self-confidence simply means that now you are becoming aware that life is bigger than reason. When somebody asks you a question -- somebody says, 'Is there a God?' only a foolish person can say yes or no. He can say with confidence! And you can judge by the confidence how foolish he is. I go on looking into christian missionaries' books -- I have never seen such stupid literature. So confident -- and without knowing anything! Somebody asks, 'Is there a God?'... a small child asks you, 'Is there God?' and you say, 'Yes.' Just look behind your 'yes'. What are you trying to pretend before the child? Who are you kidding? Be humble, and say to the child, 'I don't know.' You will be truer, and closer to God.Read the full discourse →
Tao Upanishad · Discourse 43
1972-06-21 · Bombay · Hindi · English translation
A friend has asked: Osho, I lack self-confidence; how can it arise?
Only man has gone mad. His doing has become more important than his rest. Why do we act at all? Man acts so that someday he may rest. And the end is that the chance to rest never comes; he ends while still doing. What, then, is the goal? Diogenes is resting, lying in the sand—naked. Alexander has gone to meet him. Alexander says, “Such ease! Such bliss! Still, I ask, if I can do anything for you, tell me.” Diogenes says, “Step a little to the side. The sunlight was coming, and you have become an obstacle. What more can you do? We were perfectly happy—the fresh morning light was falling—and you came in between. Just move aside.” Alexander felt thoroughly baffled. He had thought he would do something for Diogenes—he could have piled up mountains of wealth. And what did Diogenes ask? Alexander said, “Diogenes, you do not…Read the full discourse →
The Way Of Tao Volume 2 · Discourse 21
1972-06-21 · Immortal Study Circle · English
One friend asks: we have no self-confidence. How shall we create it within ourselves?
Do not create self-confidence. What does it mean to create self-confidence? It means you want to claim that you are something and you want to prove it. It means you consider yourself not ordinary. You want to prove your extraordinariness. All mad people are self-confident. It is difficult to shake their confidence in themselves. If a mad person takes it into his head that he is Napoleon, all the world cannot persuade him to the contrary. He is convinced within his mind. I ask you what is the need for self-confidence? Why are you so worried about it? Perhaps you feel the other person is more successful; perhaps he is more self-confident. Your contemporary earns more than you, or perhaps he has made headway in business or politics. You feel you have lagged behind. You feel it is because of the lack of self-confidence. Hence the urge. To worry about…Read the full discourse →
A Sudden Clash Of Thunder · Discourse 5
1976-08-15 · Buddha Hall · English
A wrestler named o-nami great waves, was immensely strong and highly skilled in the art of wrestling. In private be defeated even his very teacher, but in public his own young pupils could throw him.
IN HIS TROUBLE HE WENT TO A ZEN MASTER WHO WAS STOPPING AT A NEARBY TEMPLE BY THE SEA, AND ASKED FOR COUNSEL. "GREAT WAVES IS YOUR NAME, " SAID THE MASTER, "SO STAY IN THIS TEMPLE TONIGHT AND LISTEN TO THE WAVES OF THE SEA. IMAGINE YOU ARE THOSE WAVES. FORGET YOU ARE A WRESTLER, AND BECOME THOSE HUGE WAVES SWEEPING EVERYTHING BEFORE THEM." O-NAMI REMAINED. HE TRIED TO THINK ONLY OF THE WAVES, BUT BE THOUGHT OF MANY THINGS. THEN GRADUALLY HE DID THINK ONLY OF THE WAVES. THEY ROLLED LARGER AND LARGER AS THE NIGHT WORE ON. THEY SWEPT AWAY THE FLOWERS IN THE VASES BEFORE THE BUDDHA; THEY SWEPT AWAY THE VASES. EVEN THE BRONZE BUDDHA WAS SWEPT AWAY. BY DAWN THE TEMPLE WAS ONLY SURGING WATER, AND O-NAMI SAT THERE WITH A FAINT SMILE ON HIS FACE. THAT DAY HE ENTERED THE PUBLIC WRESTLING AND…Read the full discourse →