The room was filled with vendors from all over the tri-state area — Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. It felt like Pokémon meets fill-in-the-blank sports star.
Trading cards. Lots and lots of trading cards.
It was a fundraiser for the local Scouting America troop. My job was to sign autographs of a newly minted Amy Gamble Olympic trading card.
I think they may have been a small shot in the arm for building confidence.
~sigh~
As I took my seat on the stage beside other vendors, I paused to take in the entire environment playing out in front of me. I could smell chili cooking in a crock pot. I watched the young man beside me making trades and collecting wads of cash from his cards.
My table held my trading cards and an 8.5 x 11 poster they had asked me to sign for giveaways. It also had my books, Bipolar Disorder: My Biggest Competitor and Unsilenced.
It was the first time in years I’d felt comfortable sitting at a table with my books for sale.
There was one moment when I covered up the Bipolar Disorder book. An instant of vulnerability. But it passed quickly when someone came up and wanted to buy it.
I’m not a huge believer in external validation. However, when it’s positive, it can strengthen the internal confidence we’re building. It becomes one of the bricks.
The moment felt surreal at times. A couple hundred people talking at once in a church hall, yet I still drifted off for a minute or two.
A time to take it all in and be eternally grateful I was sitting at that table.
No trauma.
No drama.
Just me and my Olympic trading card.
I’m almost speechless thinking about that moment. One point in time. How the years have added up and gone by. Many filled with struggle. Several where confidence waned more than it was built.
A year earlier, I was probably driving winding roads delivering DoorDash. Contemplating whether I ever wanted to be visible again. Convincing myself I preferred anonymity.
I eventually realized I was driving my way through grief. And in the middle of the grief processing, I had little time or energy to create new dreams, encourage others to dream, or sit at a public event signing autographs.
Every day on those roads gave me space to reflect. They shaped the woman I’m evolving into — someone who doesn’t mind taking a chance on an email because she’s no longer afraid of rejection.
The person who has only a slight pause when placing her books on a table in a room full of strangers.
There may be no greater compliment to an author than someone wanting to buy your book. I never really marketed or promoted Unsilenced, because my mom died right before I finished it.
Sitting at tables during conferences or at the library selling my books was something she did with me. I had no desire to do that activity alone.
And yet, yesterday, there I was.
I wasn’t there to boost my confidence. I was there to support the scouting troop. It was their idea for me to sell my books. I doubt I would have brought them if they hadn’t suggested it.
But one thing led to another. I had cards printed with my Substack logo, Beyond the Arc, and my business, Champions of Resilience. I handed them out. I asked people if they liked to read about resilience, identity, and confidence.
I encouraged them to sign up.
Six months ago, would I have done that? No. I would have shown up quietly to support the kids.
I’m the person who hesitates to put subscribe buttons on my newsletters. But if the goal is to write and share my words, I have to let people know where they can find them.
It truly is a matter of confidence.
I don’t believe I’ll ever arrive at 100% confidence. Doubts still show up. In fact, I think doubt usually arrives first.
It’s like crossing a creek where the rocks are slippery. If you want to get across, you have to place your foot carefully. Move slowly. Trust your balance.
If you slip, you get back up.
That’s the key to confidence, one step at a time. Not perfection. Not the absence of fear or doubt. But learning they will be our companions — and choosing to move forward anyway.
I’m grateful to Scouting America for the opportunity to sign my own trading card. That day will be marked in my memory as a day my confidence grew.
Not from doing anything grand.
But from simply showing up.
Reflection Questions
1. When have you found yourself standing at the edge of something uncertain, unsure whether to take the next step?
2. What doubts tend to appear first when you consider doing something that requires courage or visibility?
3. Looking back, what small steps have helped rebuild your confidence during difficult seasons?
4. Where in your life might you be standing on the edge of the creek right now?
5. What is one small step you could take today, even if the rocks feel a little slippery?
A Note to Readers
If you’ve been walking through this series with me, thank you.
Confidence is rarely built in big, dramatic moments. More often, it grows quietly — in the small decisions we make each day. The choice to show up. The willingness to try again. The courage to move forward even when doubt is still whispering nearby.
Writing these essays reminded me that confidence is not the absence of fear or uncertainty. It is the quiet understanding that we can continue anyway.
Sometimes I think of it like crossing a creek on slippery stones. We test our footing. We shift our balance. We move carefully from one rock to the next.
Every once in a while, we slip.
But over time, something begins to change. We realize we’re stronger than we thought. We trust our balance a little more. And the steps that once felt impossible start to feel natural.
My hope is that somewhere in these essays you saw a reflection of your own journey — the moments where you chose to keep going when the path wasn’t perfectly clear.
That’s where confidence grows. Not all at once. Not perfectly.
But one step at a time.
Thank you for walking this path with me.
— Amy Gamble
Confidence, One Step at a Time and Everyday Resilience are now available on Amazon (Amazon Link) Each of the essays have been published into books. At the end of each essay, you’ll find reflection questions and reflection exercises.
The next writing series and last book of the series Champions of Resilience is called Radical Acceptance: Making Peace with What Is
