Women Consultants, Are You Living Out Your Potential?
This was originally posted on my Seven Figure Consultant LinkedIn Newsletter. Subscribe today to get insights about how women are building powerful and impactful consulting businesses.
As women we receive so many different messages about who we are expected to be and how we are expected to be.
Young girls are often discouraged from behaving in ‘bossy’ ways or being pushy. Women often have to work harder than men to be taken seriously and we are still having to battle against preconceptions based on our appearance, age, hair colour, whether or not we have kids or are in a relationship.
In my own career, I have frequently been assumed to be the most junior person present because I have a youthful appearance and I am petite. And I speak to women all the time who have faced discrimination – either unspoken or explicit – that basically boils down to the fact that they are not men.
You have all the pressures of trying to meet other people’s high standards, and working to achieve your potential, which is a huge pressure for Type A high achievers. You have spent your childhood and education being told you have so much potential, and it is a really great feeling. You feel excited for your future career and your future life but then the older you get, the more you feel like it really is now or never… but you don’t necessarily feel ready to achieve your potential and ‘fulfil your destiny’.
So often we can dream up an amazing venture, but just because you have the dream doesn’t mean you feel ready – or like you have everything you need to create an amazing consulting business and life for yourself.
I speak to so many women who started out as VAs because they did not feel confident enough to set themselves up as the expert in their field. Or who work with companies at the beginner stage instead of companies who require expert level input, because they were not sure if they were worthy enough to claim expert status.
It isn’t just consultant women who do this. I have also spoken to women still in corporate who accept a promotion but refuse the pay because they don’t want people to think or say they weren’t ready to work at a higher level.
There is so much fear when it comes to setting your prices. We fear being told we are too expensive. We fear being told we are not worth the high price we are asking for – and that can hit us before, during and also after the project takes place. We fear raising the level of expectation we are up against – what if the client has an inflated view of what we are able to do for them and we can’t deliver the goods?
So, I want to ask you: are you living out your potential?
And, if not why not? What will make a difference?
Maybe you can’t leap into a whole different life in one go, so take a step towards the business you want, the work you want. The lifestyle you want.
Another great question to ask yourself is: what do you want, vs what do you fear?
We move forward when we want the result more than we want to stay stuck in fear and scarcity.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the nearly 6 years since I founded my own business, it’s that mindset work doesn’t turn you into a different person, but it does result in showing up as a more authentic version of yourself.
And I have seen it in my clients. I recently had a session with a client of mine who we both agree is just showing up in a completely different energy to how she felt a year ago. She now takes on projects with amazing energy and confidence. She hasn’t become a different person – she is giving herself permission to be the courageous person she always has been. And the difference is tangible. Her business is not the same business!
And that’s the key thing with imposter syndrome. It holds us back because it stops us from taking action and getting the things we truly want.
The thing I always want to say to my clients when they have been through this kind of journey is: you were that person all along.
We don’t create a new person through coaching – we just work to reveal the person that was there the whole time.
It is life changing. And the impact on your business is literally quantifiable!
And if you know that this is absolutely the moment to stop feeling stuck and you’re ready to work with me, you can find out more information here.
I’d love to hear from you – are you living out your potential?
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Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear your feedback and future topics you’d like me to feature. You may also enjoy The Seven Figure Consultant Podcast, the show that takes you from booked up and burned out in your consulting business to THRIVING as the CEO of your 7 figure enterprise.