“ WEEK 117 / 133 – 133 WEEKS TO SUCCESS “
We hear messages from loved ones and strangers that we carry with us and internalize. Even if we don’t agree with their statements, they can linger in our minds. When we are told that we are sweet and would make a great caregiver, perhaps we become a caregiver in an office environment. We take on so many to accommodate people that we leave for the day and wind up exhausted, huffing over the couch and binging on Netflix. Maybe we’re told that we’re too aggressive, so we try to overcompensate and don’t participate enough when we should.
Don’t back down from volunteering from a project when your contributions would overweigh anticipated backlash. Be present and make your voice heard. If there is something that you feel knowledgeable or passionate about, or you would like to take the chance to learn more about it, then take the chance. Learn what you can with the tools that you have, and if you don’t have the tools that you need, then ask for them.
There’s also the eager beaver in you that wants to take a bite out of more than you can chew. You may think that you’re being helpful when you might actually taking a valuable teaching moment from someone else. It’s a fine balance between taking on assignments for career growth versus grandstanding and taking all of the best or most visible projects for yourself.
Think of the symbiotic relationship between mentor and mentee. The mentor wants to pass on knowledge and skills to the mentee, and like a mother bird, helps to teach the mentee how to fly on their own. The mentee, in turn, strives to make their mentor look like the best thing since sliced bread and, through their words and actions, show how much they’ve learned from their wonderful mentor.
The things that people tell us carry a certain weight. We must make sure to not let those words weigh us down so heavily. Don’t internalize messages and let others’ words to you, whether directly to you or in passing, become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Make your own choices and educate yourself so you can teach others how to do the same.
Cheers,
Kelly
@AlphaFemSociety tweets by @KellyRGonzales
About:
Each week, I take a tip from Lois P. Frankel’s book, Nice Girls Still Don’t Get the Corner Office, and explore how each of these tips affect myself and other women in similar positions on the road to becoming the women we want to be. There are far and few between who are a few steps behind me, and many more who are far advanced. I found that Lois P. Frankel’s advice applied to novice, intermediates, and experts alike. It helped me see that I was already doing right, served as a reminder to keep on doing what I was doing and how to keep that momentum going. The book also showed me areas where I could improve, and gave realistic tips to jump on board. There are a total of 133 tips, and explore one tip per week in a program I call: 133 Weeks to Success.
Join the movement using the hashtag #133WeeksToSuccess with posts which are posted every #AlphaFemaleFriday.
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