If one wants to succeed, then one should act as though one were genuinely confident about one's abilities, even if on...

Victoria on May 28, 2020

Hi @filozinni,

Let's start by going through the stimulus.

The passage concludes that, to obtain success, you should act as if you are genuinely confident in your own abilities.

Why? Because those who genuinely believe in their abilities obtain success more easily than those with self-doubts.

We are looking for the answer choice which strengthens this argument.

Answer choice (A) is incorrect because it is irrelevant. The passage does not focus on other people's perceptions; rather, the passage is focused on your own perceptions of yourself.

Answer choice (C) is incorrect because it does not impact the argument. Even if success if more a matter of luck or determination than skill, it can still be true that people who believe in their own abilities can succeed more easily than those who do not.

Answer choice (D) is incorrect because it is focused on how confident people already behave. The passage is focused on how people who wish to be successful should behave even if they have self-doubts. This answer choice is tempting because it is close to the right answer, but the fact that many people who are confident in themselves behave in a self-confident manner does not strengthen the conclusion that people who have self-doubt should behave in a self-confident manner.

Answer choice (E) is incorrect because it weakens the conclusion. If self-doubt can assist in the development of the skills necessary for success, then people with self-doubt could be successful even if they do not act in a self-confident manner.

Answer choice (B) is correct because it further connects the premise and the conclusion. We know that those who have genuine confidence obtain success more easily than those with self-doubts. If genuine confidence often results from pretended self-confidence, then there is an additional reason to pretend to be self-confident. Not only will you obtain success more easily, but you will eventually likely gain genuine self-confidence as well.

Hope this is helpful! Remember to check out our detailed explanations for each question which are now available when you review each section. We're always happy to help if you need any further clarification!

filozinni on June 3, 2020

Thank you so much @Victoria!