You May Be Capable, But Are You Confident?

Just about every woman I know is perfectly capable. She’s great at managing her household, being a stable and reliable employee, taking care of her kids, multi-tasking, cooking up a great meal – doing just about anything that needs and has to be done. Why is it, then, that so many women lack confidence?

Women are able to be leaders and excel at anything they set their minds to. It may be sports or having an academic career or just plain being a mom, but there’s absolutely nothing to stop you from being the best you can be at the career of your choice. However, to be the best at what you do, you must develop not only competence in what you do, but confidence as well.

Just Give Me the Facts

You’re not convinced that you can do everything necessary to be a leader in your chosen field, are you? Try this, start by taking inventory of the skills you have in your personal toolbox. Don’t let your emotions or biases take over; take an objective look at what you do and how well you do it. There are plenty of personality tests online that are able to help you look objectively at this self-assessment.

But you don’t have to just take your own word for it; ask your friends, family members, and colleagues to help you out. They will certainly be more kind to you than you will be to yourself. What do others say are your most valuable skills? What do they see as the things that give you strength? What did your supervisor note in your last evaluation? What do your kids say when they brag to their friends?

Often, when you review this list of your skill set alone it helps to develop confidence. Sometimes we don’t realize what we’re really good at until we take the time to sit down and examine our Selves through someoneelse’s eyes.

Understanding and Acceptance

Are you still not convinced that you could be – or may already be – a leader? Stop and ask yourself the following questions:

1. Has anyone ever come to you for professional opinions or advice? Are you the person who is often consulted on new work related projects or the mom who others in the neighborhood come to for help?
2. Have you taught anyone else the same skills that you are great in? Have you ever taken the time to mentor someone?
3. How many times have you ever been unprepared for a business meeting or a family gathering? Can you say that you have ever been totally and completely unprepared?
4. Has anyone ever told you that your work was not up to par? Have you ever received negative feedback from your boss or any of your family members?
5. Have you won an award or have you been nominated for special recognition?

I’ll quite sure that you didn’t answer all of these questions or even some of those questions with a “no”.

Are you taken aback by the results of this exercise? Quite a few women are. Somewhere, deep down, they are aware of the talents that they possess, but too often they brush them aside because they don’t want to be viewed as egotistical. But that also will cause her to have a lack of confidence.

The key to using your capabilities to build confidence lies with a belief that you have in your Self. When you use your everyday values to guide your career decisions, they will help bolster your awareness of what you are good at and what makes you feel good. Confidence is extremely healthy; it’s a positive and necessary trait that will help you become the best woman that you can be.