The Takeaway: Women of color, you don't need another degree to change your career; you need self-trust.
Why It Matters: Many women of color want to pursue more fulfilling careers. They think changing jobs means starting over from the bottom, getting another degree, and going into debt.
But transitioning isn't the same thing as starting over.
You may be at the start of something new, but you are on a different level. You don't have to do the same things you did before. Instead, you have to trust that you can leap to meet the desires of your heart. Not because you are 100% sure of the outcome but because you are sure of yourself. You are confident that you can rise to meet the occasion.
The Backstory
This summer, I've been hosting You Were Built For This roadmap calls to help women of color transition from the job they were trained for to the careers they were built for.
So far, I've talked to several dynamic women and have noticed a reoccurring theme in almost all of those conversations.
That theme is self-doubt.
Oppression tricks women of color into looking to everyone BUT themselves for answers. It tricks us into thinking that we WILL only succeed if we know every step in the plan to achieve our goals before we even take the first step. And if we do fail – it's our fault.
We say to ourselves – if only we marry the right person, pray to the right God, get even more education, and make the right moves… then maybe, just maybe, we will get to the promised land of peace, freedom, and financial stability… someday.
The promised land does not come from knowing all the steps in advance and making all the right choices.
It comes from having the POWER to trust ourselves. Trust that we have the answers, can do what we desire, and know what's best for us.
True power comes from having an unshakeable faith in yourself.
When you trust yourself, you leap to meet your heart's desires. Not because you are 100% sure of the outcome but because you are sure of yourself. You are sure that you can rise to meet the occasion.
You know you can count on you.
Oppression robs us of our self-trust at a very young age. It tricks us into subconsciously blaming ourselves instead of oppression for things like disproportionate access to resources, making less money, carrying debt, and so much more. Oppression makes us believe that these outcomes are a result of our bad choices. Therefore we cannot be trusted. We need someone else to show us the way.
That is simply not true.
You cannot equate any outcome with your worth. That's a dangerous game because we can't control outcomes no matter how hard we try. We can only trust that we have our backs and can pick ourselves up if we fall.
How To Cultivate Self-Trust
If you are looking to cultivate more self-trust in your career decisions, here are some fundamental principles you'll want to keep in mind:
Self Trust ≠ Reckless
Trusting yourself isn't about recklessness or having a cavalier attitude. It's about honoring your strengths, relying on your ability to make decisions based on your past experiences, and being honest about your weaknesses.
For example, if you know you have an issue with time management, get support. Don't keep browbeating yourself into becoming a time manager on your own. It's a waste of energy. Being honest about and getting support for your weaknesses is one of the best ways to trust that you will make the right decisions for you.
Calm Your Nervous
Overanalyzing is an indicator that fear might be driving your decision-making. In her book Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, Elizabeth Gilbert explains that fear, like all other human emotions, will be along for the ride whenever you try to pursue anything you really want. The key is not letting that emotion determine how you will move forward. Instead, you must take control. Calming your brain before you decide will help you make decisions from self-trust instead of fear.
Jump In
Years ago, I went to a conference in Portland where one of the speakers on stage repeated that old cliche, "jump and a net shall appear." At the time, I thought the speaker was nuts. I didn't think you should jump into anything.
Now I know that not jumping in keeps you stuck in indecision for a really long time. Trust your ability to be resilient in the face of whatever shows up.
You can handle what comes next. You've already made it this far.
If you want to try something new in your career, don't spend another second ruminating. Instead, jump in. You've earned the right to go after what you want, and you can trust yourself to get there.
In power and solidarity,
Toya
P.S. Heads up - next week, I'll be on vacation. So you won't see a newsletter from me. We'll be back to our regularly scheduled programming on Friday, August 18th.