The Confidence Gap – What It Is And How To Narrow It

You’ve probably heard people talk about the confidence gap between men and women, but what is it and how can we narrow it?

As a Confidence and Career Coach, it’s obviously something I support women with on a daily basis.

 

Research and my own experience have shown that in general men are more confident than women. They have more self-belief and are more willing to take risks.

The gap occurs when women are held back in life by their own self-doubts and fear of failure or disapproval. When this happens in the workplace it’s referred to as Imposter Syndrome.

 

How do I know if I’m holding myself back?

The typical behaviours you’d be showing are:

• You feel like a fraud, that you’ve got your role because of luck despite your hard work and experience
• You underestimate your abilities and think others are far better at the job
• You don’t go for new opportunities and find it hard to make decisions
• You defer to others opinions and find it hard to speak up

 

How can I narrow the gap?

 

• Remember that good enough is good enough. You don’t have to achieve 100% or be 100% sure before you put your work out there
• Talk about your successes, it isn’t boasting it’s about getting recognition for your work
• Step out of your comfort zone. Volunteer for new opportunities, take risks and speak up
• Get out of your own head. Avoid overthinking and ruminating on your insecurities, you won’t find a solution and it knocks your confidence
• Take action. That’s the quickest way to build your confidence, then ensure you celebrate the courage you showed.

 

You’re not alone in struggling with the confidence gap and as women, if we all take a small step towards reducing it, work and life will be so much more fulfilling.

Here’s a quote from Zachary Estes a research psychologist

the natural result of low confidence is inaction. When women don’t act, when we hesitate because we aren’t sure, we hold ourselves back. But when we do act, even if it’s because we’re forced to, we perform just as well as men do’.

 

My question for you is what are you going to do today to narrow the confidence gap?

Good luck and if you’d like to have a chat with me you can contact me here or book a free call at www.speakwithjo.com

Jo

P.S. Have you read my “7Proven Strategies To Get The Pay Rise Or Promotion You Deserve“?