Daisy glanced at her watch nervously and noticed that it was only 9.30 am. She was anxious going into the boardroom meeting this morning because she disliked confrontation.
Daisy had made up her mind to confront Jake if he tried to dismiss her comments or talk over her again in the meeting like he always did.
She knew that at times she could be timid and reserved, but that did not give Jake the right to be rude and disrespectful. Daisy was ready to stand up for herself even though the thought of confronting him terrified her.
As the clock slowly crept closer to 10.00, Daisy made her way to the boardroom and took her seat in preparation of the meeting starting. She avoided small talk, choosing to focus her attention on remaining internally strong and determined in her course of action.
The meeting started off smoothly, and then it was her time to talk and to give her summary of the week’s sales. As Daisy began to speak and relay the results, Jake rudely interrupted her to give his commentary and opinion.
Daisy looked around the room as other team members started asking Jake questions and responding to what he had just said. As she observed her work colleagues conversing, Daisy felt invisible and lost her courage to speak up, to hold her ground, and to confront Jake. Daisy retreated and kept silent thinking to herself, “My opinion is not important”.
With this decision, Daisy’s life would continue to repeat the same story as she allowed Jake and others to diminish her value and accomplishments.
Many of us know what it feels like to not feel valued or worthy—and to feel like we have to earn and prove it. When we prioritise other people’s opinions above our own, seeking their validation and acknowledgment to feel worthy and important.
Unfortunately, once we have based our worth and value on external validation, then we will be forced to continue seeking it from others so as not to feel worthless. Others will always hold power over how we feel, and we will try to please them.
We need to become internally focused and recognize that we are already worthy, valuable, and important. We must not let others or their opinions determine our self-worth.
This week’s challenge is to demonstrate how much you believe in your self-worth. Only you can say you are worthy and only you can believe it. Start by listening to what others say about you and take action if anyone undervalues you. Remind yourself that your worth is more important than their opinion and do not be afraid to walk away, either literally or mentally by changing the topic of discussion. Perhaps it may even be that you can limit your interactions with this person.
Start to believe in yourself and your worth. Monitor your self-talk and affirm to yourself that you are worthy until you believe it. Build your self-worth by knowing who you truly are and reflecting on your achievements until you have made it your belief. Refuse to let others determine how you feel about yourself or tell you what you are worth.
Forever creating,
Deborah Ruth
