People as a rule can easily become intimidated by confident people. A strong, deep voice can be scary. Or a personality who "shifts his weight around." He looks like he knows everything." Or people who wear impressive clothing, albeit for religious reasons. Beards and Payos can be scary, despite the fact that that person may be a weak shleppy person, with 10 times more issues than you have.
A tough person, a leader, or any kind of successful person can be a form of Avoda Zara Mamash; you start "worshipping" him. You forget about his never-ending bathroom needs, and his "alive and well" Yetzer Hara that you don’t know about. Especially if he is a Rosh Yeshiva or a Tzaddik; he can be even a worse form of Avoda Zara if you keep forgetting Hashem when you keep chapping Hispa'alus "Ooh! Ahh! What a giant!" "What a power”!
The idea of Limud HaMussar is to brainwash yourself to believe and have Bitachon in Hashem, and to remember the truth of your existence, etc. No wonder R’ Gershon was so fearless against the Nazis, and he actually built a Yeshiva in their presence. (He came out publicly against hiding from them; imagine how real Hashem was by him??) He had brainwashed himself with Mussar overtime, by saying: בוֹט יִל םיִק˄ֱא תַבְרִק יִנֲאַו תהלים עג כח closeness to Hashem is my good, etc. many, many times.
The more Mussar we learn, especially about Bitachon and not being afraid of people, the more we bring Bracha into this world, and especially into our own lives. Don't be afraid of confident people! They aren't g-ds! They are there Min HaShamayim to test you.
Hashem wants to see: "Are you more afraid of them than Me?" Remember how Avraham Avinu smashed idols. So too, in our mind we need to smash all those Hispa'alus areas, like confident people, big crowds, or massive buildings, etc. You admire confident people, because in Olam HaZeh they are the big shots. The truth is just the opposite. Halevai they aren't going to burn in Gehinom, which is a place tailor made for Baalei Ga’ava (Gemara).The meek, insecure, and maybe somewhat anxious and depressive person is a Ben Olam HaBah. However, please don't start deciding that any person with self-confidence is Gehinom material. There is plenty of hope for them, especially if they channel their Ga’ava properly. Also, don't be so sure that their self-confidence is real; it may be a put-on or a habit, etc.
