The directors of Britain's small businesses are well placed to exploit new opportunities in global markets, as long as they leave the self-doubt behind and believe in themselves

The possibly apocryphal last words of a dying soldier in a flooded trench on the Somme, "mustn't grumble," sum up a great deal about the British psyche. Commentators on our national character cite our restraint, stoicism, fatalism, mastery of the understatement and ironic self-deprecation, traits frequently attributed to our dismal weather.

We also have a strong sense of fair play, manifested in our support for the underdog and our wariness of too much success. But admirable though many of these characteristics might seem, they also reflect, or even encourage, a lack of confidence, which is more to do with our geographic and psychological insularity than it is with the weather.
Where this lack of confidence spills over into the sporting or business arena, it puts us at a severe competitive disadvantage.

At the recent Institute of Directors' annual convention, director general Miles Templeman suggested that the reason the England football team loses penalty shoot-outs at important national games is that they don't expect to win. The same might apply to Tim Henman's failure to clinch a Wimbledon title.

Similarly, Templeman warned that the UK's insecurity about China's growing economic power could also become a self-fulfilling prophecy. He urged British businesses to exploit the potential of the emerging powerhouse rather than seeing it as a threat and, more generally, warned against the dangers of a retreat into defensiveness and protectionism in the face of growing global challenges.

Self-belief and a thick skin get you a long way, as a friend and I, discussing the improbable career trajectories of some of our former colleagues, concluded the other day. But add talent, inspiration, passion and determination to the mix, and the combination is explosive.

It is smaller businesses—which are free from bureaucracy and tradition, are flexible enough to adapt, and are led by those who are willing to fail, learn and fix fast—that are best placed to exploit big opportunities.

There was no lack of confidence among the line-up of entrepreneurs at the convention, which this year included Live Aid founder Bob Geldof. Driven by passionate belief in an idea, and determined to succeed despite apparently insurmountable obstacles, criticism and negativity, successful entrepreneurs also, as Geldof put it, marry what they do with who they are. And where a strong social conscience or purpose is integral to both, they can achieve monumental change.

But the area in which businesses are perhaps least confident of all, despite a long tradition of philanthropy stretching back 200 years or more, is their ability to do good.

"The role of business is to make the world a better place for everyone," said Kevin Roberts, global CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, another convention speaker. But this universal truth seems to have been forgotten by businesses themselves, by the general public, and, judging by the growing tangle of red tape and recent punitive tax changes, by the government.

Indeed, though he claimed that "being a director is bloody boring", the rock star Geldof displayed more affinity with and understanding of business and its potential to do good than either the prime minister or the leader of the opposition, each of whom expounded equally unconvincing visions for the business sector at the convention. Geldof took the business world to task for the tentativeness and embarrassment that hold it back from the personal and corporate commitment necessary to change things for the better, concluding with a rallying cry from Goethe: "Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

Britain—a tiny, densely populated island—is the fifth-largest economy in the world. More than any other country, it has driven, and continues to drive, the process of globalisation in trade, governance and even sport. Now, more than ever, the business world needs leadership as it moves into the uncharted territories of global citizenship and sustainability. It's time to start believing in ourselves again, to dig deep and provide that leadership. Winning might not be everything, but it's a damn sight better than losing.