Do you avoid conflict to keep the peace and go with the flow?
If you have answered yes to any of those questions, you are most likely a victim of the need to be liked. This also means you have lost — or are in the process of losing — direction, confidence and control of who you are and what you want.
Business is business, and personal is personal. You are not in business to be ‘liked’ but rather to be respected and to earn a living (plus some).
You need to be ruthless with yourself and your world. Of course, this doesn’t mean treating people badly… you should always treat others how you would like to be treated yourself. However, you also need to stand your ground on your business values and goals.
Here is a guide to help you kickstart letting go of fear and taking steps to be a #BossLady
Set boundaries.
This is very important in all areas of life, but especially in business. People treat you the way you let them treat you — so make sure you have clear boundaries (even just setting them quietly to yourself) that you stick to. This will quickly filter out the wrong people and attract likeminded people.
Learn to say no.
Women generally don’t like to say no; but if you don’t learn to say it, you will burn out or (worse) lose track of where you are headed! Learn to say no without actually using the word. For example, “I’ll have to get back to you on that” … which will give you time to think and not react in the moment.
Know what you want.
People respect those who are confident about where they are headed. This requires clear vision and knowing what you want and where you’re going. This is a sign of strong character, which leads to respect.
Enjoy alone time.
This would have to be one of the most important factors. If you are not willing to be alone, you may find yourself making choices that are not in your best interest — purely to have people in your life. Don’t. You need to be comfortable alone and the right people will naturally fall into place beside and behind you.
Have non-business friendships.
Build up a quality network of friends that support you 100% no matter what decision you make in business. These are your true friends and great for being objective — partly because they don’t have to be associated with what you actually do.
Always ask yourself: am I making this decision because I want to be liked or fear being disliked? Or am I genuinely making the decision because it is the right thing for me to do?
Amanda Rose runs www.westernsydneywomen.com.au
