“…go on a journey to discover your authentic self, develop a mission statement and, your terms of engagement – this will help to keep you anchored to your core values.”
dawn jones
I have learned to say no. Frequently as women we say yes, to things because we don’t want to say no, and we end up regretting it. It took me a while and lots of practice until I became comfortable, saying no, respectfully, without having to explain myself. I have also learnt that when people show you who they are – believe them. Stop thinking that being friendly and respectful to people will engage with me accordingly. I lost quite a few years, working this out!
I spent a lot of time in confusion, asking myself why would people behave like that, how could they speak to me like that, treat me like that, but the more pertinent, and useful question (for me) turned out to be why did I allow it? Ouch! I started to do the internal work on me instead of focusing on what other people were or were not doing. I also learned to nip issues in the bud. It has been liberating! Now, I look at situations far more objectively, and take things far less personally, which saves untold emotional wear and tear.
To my clients, I say if you don’t know who you are before you walk into an organisation, the organisation will tell you who you are. So, I would say, go on a journey to discover your authentic self, develop a mission statement and, your terms of engagement – this will help to keep you anchored to your core values. Remember, you bring you to every interaction, so become the best version of yourself.