Episode 74: On Confidence
/“You see a man in a job interview and he answers off the cuff of his sleeve, he doesn’t think, oh my gosh, I might not able to do that, or could I do that?”
“The times when I’ve had to ask for things it’s seemed so hard, it’s almost unthinkable that I would be able to ask for something and that I deserved it.”
Study after study shows women have less confidence than men. But you hardly need a study to work that out. Just look around you - how many women do you know who exude the same self-belief as the men in your life? Confidence, or the lack of it, is a big issue in many women's careers, including my own. In this show I talk to business owner Denise Barreto, whose confidence I envy, and NPR reporter Stacey Vanek Smith, who shares a lot of my hangups. She has to psych herself up to ask for things at work, because she's not quite sure she deserves it - but she says you can use that discomfort to your advantage.
You can also read a transcript of the show.
Don't forget to check out my sponsor for this episode, M.M. LaFleur - if you order your Bento Box between now and December 31st, 2015 you'll be entered into a draw for a $300 gift card.
Further reading:
Women's Confidence Gap in the Workplace, via Refinery 29.
The Confidence Gap and Women Entrepreneurs, from Forbes.
Men's 'Honest Overconfidence' May Lead to Male Domination in the C-Suite, via Columbia Business School.
This Atlantic piece is written by Confidence Code authors Katty Kay and Claire Shipman.