Many people believe that motivation drives action, yet in practice the opposite is true . The decision to act has been shown to be closely linked with one's confidence in their decision . Evidence also suggests that confidence expectations affect future decision-making . Thus, increasing student confidence in their academic activities is almost certain to increase the likelihood that they will attempt such activities in the future. The relationship between practice and the development of expertise has been well-characterized, i.e., "deliberate practice" . Hence it follows that increasing student confidence should also build their expertise through increased practice. Naturally, the question arises-how can instructors help build student confidence in their academic activities?