When I saw this article written by Kelly McCausey, I asked her right away if I could publish it here.
Wonderful thoughts on being confident in business. Enjoy!
The Truth about Confident Women
Some women have what I call social bravado. Putting on a great act of confidence while in public is second nature, leading most to believe that they have it all put together. It would surprise many to realize when these women unplug and are left to themselves they quickly begin overanalyze and doubt themselves.
Interestingly enough, other women live exactly the opposite. They are confident in themselves on a personal level yet never assert that confidence in a public way.
I can count on one hand the number of women I know who are truly self confident both in public and in private. Unless you really get to know someone you don’t really know how genuine their confidence is. The saying is true. You can’t judge a book by its cover.
If you struggle with a lack of confidence in yourself or your ideas, I’m going to guess you have spent too much time comparing yourself to other people’s book covers.
Lets dig underneath the surface. Make a list of a dozen women you admire and have often compared yourself to. Now, consider this:
* Most of these women have no idea you think they’re great.
* At least half don’t feel worthy of respect and admiration.
* A third of them worry daily about being seen as a ‘poser’.
* Several are really afraid of you knowing just how much they doubt themselves.
* Two or three of them struggle with secret insecurities that cripple them emotionally and hurt their personal relationships.
These are random observations based on my experience in getting to know successful women. Look at the list of names you have made and think about who might struggle the most? Who fears the most? Who works the hardest to appear more confident than they really are?
The truth is that you won’t be able to figure it out just by looking at them. Nobody can. We’re usually shocked to learn that someone successful has insecurities just like us. But as shocking as that may be – it has the power to really set you free from your own fears and insecurity.
If they can wake up every day and combat thoughts of doubt and fear – so can you.
Kelly McCausey is the host of Work at Home Moms Talk Radio, a podcast devoted to sharing resources and success stories that inspire the mom who want to work at home. http://www.wahmtalkradio.com