Confidence talks differently when it knows it does not need witnesses.

Confidence that needs an audience is usually still under construction, which is why it has to be demonstrated so often. Settled confidence is quieter because it is not looking for confirmation from the room; it already has its own evidence. You can hear the difference in how someone talks about what they have done. One is reporting; the other is persuading.

Listen for that difference in others, and then listen for it in yourself. Notice when you are describing something in order to be seen a certain way. The wish for witnesses is a useful signal about where you are still unsure.