I recently attended the Businesswoman of the Year Awards in Ottawa, Ontario and spoke with the President of the Women’s Business Network of Ottawa, Karen Wilson, who helps put together this awards gala every year. We spoke about the accomplishments of the award nominees and winners. She said that every single woman who applied for these business awards had trouble filling out the part about themselves and their business. These women still struggle with their beliefs around success!
This fascinated me because these are the blocks I work with. Here are these successful businesswomen who struggle to talk about themselves—so if you’re just starting out and struggle, know it’s not just you! Even successful, award winning women business owners struggle to talk about themselves and their businesses!
The following day I was speaking with a financial coach who told me about how she struggles with accepting that she is successful. This woman has a degree from an Ivy League school and is very successful, yet she still struggles. Why is this?
Do men struggle with talking about themselves?
I don’t think so. Cultural messages that influence them as well as the beliefs that we develop as we grow up affect how we talk about ourselves. These messages tell us that women should not get too big for their britches; that women shouldn’t be too confident in their successes or they will come across too strong and immodest.
These beliefs are deadly to a woman’s mindset.
Hopefully by talking about this we can bring to light how to change this mindset for women in business and how the beliefs around success many women seem to have.
Do you struggle with talking about how great your product or service is? Have you tried faking it until you make it? Imagine what it would feel like if you just felt successful and were not afraid to talk about that success? Think about women you believe are successful and have a great mindset – think Oprah Winfrey. Think of how confident she has become throughout her career and how fearless she is to talk about herself.
Then do the deeper work. When people are not able to value themselves and their business that usually spills into other personal areas of their life. Perhaps they hesitate to advocate for themselves in their relationships or friendships—or other areas of their lives. These beliefs may start as far back as childhood and only once you start thinking about them and digging deep can you uncover them and then work on changing these beliefs.
If you would like to learn more about how to change your blocking beliefs and work on creating a healthier mindset, join my private Facebook Community or set up a time to chat with me. I look forward to connecting!