When was the last time you felt incredibly proud of yourself? The kind of pride that makes you feel warm inside and brings a smile to your face. A feeling that is so lovely it makes you feel delighted. Women are notoriously tough on themselves and the idea of celebrating themselves, their successes doesn’t always come naturally. But today I want I talk about the power of being PROUD of yourself…and what that can for you and your career.
When was the last time you felt incredibly proud of yourself? The kind of pride that makes you feel warm inside and brings a smile to your face. A feeling that is so lovely it makes you feel delighted.
Women are notoriously tough on themselves and the idea of celebrating themselves, their successes doesn’t always come naturally. But today I want I talk about the power of being PROUD of yourself…and what that can for you and your career.
Presenter: Gillian Fox
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When was the last time you felt incredibly proud of yourself? The kind of pride that makes you feel warm inside and brings a smile to your face. A feeling that is so lovely it makes you feel delighted.
Women are notoriously tough on themselves and the idea of celebrating themselves, their successes doesn’t always come naturally. But today I want I talk about the power of being PROUD of yourself…and what that can do for you and your career.
You are listening to Your Brilliant Career. I'm your host, Gillian Fox – executive coach, women's career expert, and entrepreneur. The podcast that teaches you how to get the most out of your career. We talk tactics, tools, and stories that all help incredible women like you achieve the success you deserve.
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Welcome to the podcast. I’ve had such an interesting week. I had COVID and it really slowed me right down. You can probably hear my croaky voice today. I feel like another 3-4 days to come fully out of this.
But can say being unwell, really put the brakes on - Aside from pretending to do a few things at work, I have been resting because that is what I needed to do. And you know what…I didn’t mind the solitude or the slow pace – which to be honest, caught me by surprise – because I enjoy being busy.
One of things I did do and enjoyed doing during the week … is journal – I’m a big believer in journaling. The process of writing has helped me resolve some of my biggest work challenges over the years and it has helped me come up with some of my best ideas. It also helps me to figure personal stuff out – am I overreacting, what do I need to be intentional about today – it helps me think and be more deliberate.
People have been writing in journals for more than a thousand years. So, there must something in journaling, right. It’s not just me. Michelangelo, Einstein, Andy Warhol – I’m in good company.
I used my downtime last week to reflect on the last six months – because a lot has gone down!
So I put pen to paper and I intentionally wrote down all the things we’d accomplished in the business and that I was proud of. I talked about our programs, the new things we are doing with them, our marketing initiatives, the incredible team, the new relationships, the success stories and then I moved onto my family, talked about things there – even talked about my fitness, and celebrated the fact that I finally went back to yoga and have a great new Pilates instructor – two things my aging body was asking me to do more of.
I just wrote and kept writing for a solid hour. I got the whole enchilada down.
And it felt so good – I felt unbelievably proud of myself - - so happy with everything that I had achieved or even tried to achieve. I admired my effort, my accomplishments, my courage to step up.
It was impossible not to feel good about myself about that. But even better than that… I felt motivated and driven… and I am so ready to take on the next six months with even more confidence and enthusiasm.
It is NOT a crime to be proud of yourself. It isn’t cocky or conceited to celebrate yourself. In fact – it feels awesome.
I imagine you recognise other people’s accomplishments and pay them compliments… and it makes that person feel great and that comment might even encourage them to go further, spur them on to achieve more… so, why wouldn’t do that for yourself.
Today we are talking about why it is important to be proud of yourself… and how it is available to you.
When was the last time you looked at yourself and really felt proud of yourself?
When you accomplish something, are you looking inward and cheering yourself on or waiting for someone to clap for you?
Something that I’ve learnt is that it’s okay to celebrate yourself and celebrate often. Life is too short not to celebrate yourself.
Now you might be someone that is great at celebrating the big career defining moments - such as an unexpected job offer, or an important promotion, or a presentation that you absolutely rocked. That’s super but what about the little things you pull off every day.
Do you celebrate any of them? Do you celebrate yourself when things go well or if you stretch yourself? …Or does that feel indulgent? Lacking humility?
I pat myself on the back all the time and it feels great.
I celebrate getting through my to do list for the day – I love that simple accomplishment – I feel like doing those tasks moves the team forward, the business and propels me forward. It makes me feel someone who gets stuff done – I consistently demonstrate to myself that I am doing what I set out to do – and that feels awesome.
I feel proud when I walk into my home office – which has had a little make over recently. I love the look of it. It feels stylish and professional, and I made that happen. I often buy flowers for the desk. I’m talking beautiful flowers from the florist not Woollies. Nothing big and extravagant but always elegant. I often light a candle in the morning too – I’m over it by 11.30 am – but it sets the mood for the day.
All this effort reminds me that I am worth it – that I am doing great work – that I am a person that loves her business, being organised, working in a beautiful office and it reminds that I am someone who is building amazing things in her business.
You might think there’s a lot there for a girl who’s happy with her office… and this is my point.
When you acknowledge any success – you have the opportunity to build momentum. Celebrating even small successes builds motivation and confidence.
Imagine how great your life could be if you constantly encouraged yourself – if you were able to show greater appreciation of the things you were doing on a daily basis. How would that feel?
What could that look like for you?
Recognising our value in everything from our accomplishments to our challenges – makes us more effective AND it makes us feel better about ourselves – and who doesn’t want that, huh?
If you are someone who struggles to be proud of their accomplishments, you might have to get more intentional about pausing and making sure you notice and appreciate those moments. If you don’t, you’re denying yourself more success. And I bet you want more success. I want more success for you.
There is a real impact to be had here. Take a moment to think about those days at work when things are going exceptionally well – maybe you had a terrific meeting or conversation with someone – and it left you feeling pretty damn good about yourself.
Think about your behaviours in those moments. If someone was observing you, would they say you appeared more energetic and engaging, that you had a quiet confidence that afternoon. Maybe it was your eye contact and body language – what is different in your behaviour when you are really happy within yourself? How is that confidence reflected in your work behaviour?
Do people want to spend more time with you? Do you feel bolder and more inclined to step up to new things? Do you react to things in a more positive way?
It’s an interesting reflection for all of us – who are when we do feel great?
And who are when we don’t?
When you choose to celebrate yourself and acknowledge your achievements – the most wonderful thing happens… you begin to like yourself more and more and more.
Even better… if you learn to acknowledge your own successes and give yourself credit and praise consistently – then you’re not going to be waiting on someone else to give it to you. If good things happen, you can choose to celebrate you and enjoy that success.
Waiting for someone else to clap for us and cheers us on is risky business because what if it doesn’t happen. Then how will you feel?
I can remember being very disappointed one day at work when I was not acknowledged for my contribution to an award the business won. I can remember feeling so deflated that no one complimented me on my efforts. I was like this sad girl moving through the motions at work for days.
Now I know - I denied myself any pleasure. Think about like this… if I chose to be proud of myself in that moment, people would see that – they would probably be attracted to the positive vibe that was coming from me. The irony is that they probably would have complimented too because they would have wanted to be part of it.
Watch other people yourself and you will see this pattern. People that value themselves – who are proud of their achievements – attract better relationships in business and opportunities. Who wants to work with a sad sack?
The best part of celebrating and being proud of yourself is that it builds momentum. So, when I think about my goals in the next six months and what I hope to achieve. I am using that momentum. You can do this too.
And I really hope you do.
Ask yourself …how can I start being proud of myself? What successes I am I going to celebrate – where are you going to give yourself more credit?
Seek out the small accomplishments and start to practise feeling proud.
And let me know how you go on Instagram. I always love receiving your messages.
Thank you for listening. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Thanks so much for listening to today's podcast. If you're enjoying what you're learning on the podcast, sign up for our free guide on HOW TO MAKE YOUR VALUE MORE VISIBLE AT WORK. I share three strategies that will help you amplify your accomplishments and boost self-confidence at work. I think you'll love it.
Head over to yourbrilliantcareer.com.au/free-guide. If you want some inspiration and tips during the week, join us on Instagram, Gillian Fox Group. I look forward to seeing you there.