Is It Time for a Self-Image Makeover?
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You’ve advanced to a senior role in your career and are performing at a higher level than ever before. Over time — as you grew from individual contributor to manager to leader — you learned to expand your focus from the tasks on your list to the people on your team to the goals of the organization. And if you’re leading at a rapidly growing company, you’ve seen all the ways you need to scale your approach as your company grows in size and scope.
But what about scaling your self-perception? As you’ve become more senior, what ideas about yourself have you held onto that are not serving you well?
One of my clients used to get nervous and overprepare for important meetings. She felt stressed out and anxious, and tried to anticipate every question and discussion point that might arise. Her fear was based in a decades-old image of herself as the young up-and-comer who needed to overprepare to prove that she could swim in deeper waters.
What my client was missing was the appreciation that those decades of experience and professional development were her preparation. She was a domain expert with an excellent grasp of the organization and its clients. She had, in fact, been personally responsible for a significant part of the revenues during her tenure there. All she really needed to do for most of her meetings was review the agenda, clarify her own purpose for attending, and walk into the room.
After working through this realization, my client made the mental shift from “I need to double and triple check everything so everyone knows I belong here” to “This is my world and I have a lot to offer”. And what happened? She was able to relax, show up with confidence, and leave others with the accurate impression that she was one of the heavy hitters in the room.
So take a look at the beliefs you’ve formed about yourself over your professional career. Which ones are outdated and may be getting in your way? Are you still the precocious intern seeking praise? The overachiever who’s afraid to make a mistake? Perhaps it’s time to say goodbye to your old friend, the junior you. Maybe it’s time to look in the mirror and recognize the experienced, senior, powerful leader looking back at you.
© Jennine Heller and J Heller Coaching. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jennine Heller and J Heller Coaching with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
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