self-reliance

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *swé? Proto-Indo-European *selbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *selbaz Old English self Old English self- Middle English self- English self- English reliance English self-reliance From self- + reliance.

1. The capacity to rely on one's own capabilities, and to manage one's own affairs; independence.

   “Loss of self-reliance leads to loss of self-confidence.”

   “The present sorrow always exceeds its predecessors—not so the present joy; comparison exaggerates the one, while it diminishes the other; and people talk of their youth as if it had not been a period of feverish sensitiveness, awkward embarrassments, many heart-burnings, and an utter want of that self-reliance which alone can ensure content.”