Insights for Women in Business and Entrepeneurs

For most women, the issue of confidence is something that is rarely confronted, yet it plays a major role in the level of success that is achieved either in the corporate world, or if you're venturing into an entrepreneurial role. There is a significant confidence gap between men and women, and that is something that needs to be addressed. That confidence gap is what causes women to feel as though they may not be ready to take on a new project, or a new role, or even start a completely new venture, whereas men oftentimes possess that level of confidence in themselves and their work to take that next step. That is where the career gap ultimately starts (something we'll focus on in a future blog series). Confidence is absolutely critical as a woman in business, and especially those in the early stages of their career. I’m sure we all see many women, both early or later in their career, who lack the confidence to ultimately gain trust from others.  And while confidence helps us internally feel as though we can take on new challenges, it also gives others a clear reason why they should trust us with that next big initiative. 

There are several ways to help grow your confidence. One way is to continually update your skill set. By doing that, you will start to become a true expert in your field, and it will assure your peers and colleagues that you can conquer your next project, management role, or even simple meeting. You can do this by attending events, conferences, or even meetings that are outside of your normal realm of experience at the office to start to gain more exposure. Gaining that experience, coupled with increasing confidence, will give others more reasons to trust you with more important projects and roles. 

Another important thing to focus on is your strengths and how you can truly capitalize on them. Confidence is all about taking your strengths to the next level while still working on constantly improving your weaker areas. If you're looking for a proven way to determine your strengths, some assessments to consider are the DiSC® profile and StrengthsFinder 2.0. These are both great tools to help people uncover their talents, and also see potential areas for improvement. 

Confidence is not something that happens overnight. It is something that needs to be worked on each and every day. Some days you will have small successes in growing your confidence, and other days you may have major milestones that will help boost your confidence and take you to the next level. It's important to ensure that building and maintaining your confidence is always top of mind so that you can continue to grow and thrive in your career.

Personal Story:

Confidence needs to be demonstrated every day.  I clearly remember a story that changed my thoughts on confidence, showing me how important it was. While managing the trade show initiative, we had one of our national trade shows with 30 sales reps who traveled from across the country. I was responsible for every detail of that show, which was stressful enough. But then I was tasked with speaking to the group of 30 individuals, which also included the CEO and other C-level executives about the marketing strategy for the show, roles, schedules, and more. This was a 20-minute presentation. While it doesn’t sound like much, I was not a fan of public speaking, so this was a big deal! I used that opportunity to embrace my knowledge of the role, everything I had done to prepare for the event, and gained more confidence around the presentation. That 20 minutes stuck with me throughout the week-long event. I remember that trade show as a turning point in my career. After that, I was treated as an expert in my area rather than the new, “college girl”. It helped me start to step into other roles and also start to improve my public speaking.

I invite you to download a copy of the chapter I recently co-authored for the book, The Female Factor: A Confidence Guide for Women. The chapter focuses on 6 strategies I have found helpful and hope this helps other early-stage female professionals (1-10 years experience), as you navigate your career in today's workplace.