I have two women friends who I call my coven. They are both amazing women and savvy business owners. We catch up regularly to talk business and life. And after every meeting I walk away a better person and a better business owner.
This is what happened at our last meeting…
We were sitting upstairs in a lovely little dessert cafe sipping organic tea and nibbling on sweet treats. We’d talked about book cover designs, health kicks, and the disappointment of missing out on a seemingly amazing opportunity (more about that in another article).
Then it was time to chat about our focus for the next month. I began by saying that I really needed to learn how to be calmer within myself. I’m very good at appearing calm, but normally everything is going at 20 million miles not too far below the surface.
I started to say, “I had a really busy first day back at work after the holidays…I had the Today Tonight crew filming…” And that’s where my friends stopped me.
“You mean to say that you had the Today Tonight crew over and you haven’t mentioned it at all?”
I nodded.
“Why not?”
I shrugged.
“I don’t know half the amazing stuff you are doing because you don’t tell anyone!”
And they are right. Someone might ask me how I’m going and what I’ve been up to, and I will say something fairly nondescript like “I’ve been busy”. Even though I’ve recently: (1) Been appointed the Officeworks Back to School brand ambassador for the second year in a row; (2) Been on radio twice and appeared on The Morning Show on Channel 7; and (3) Met the Prime Minister Julia Gillard for drinks at Kirribilli House.
Why don’t I say anything? Because I don’t want to appear like an egomaniac who brags and boasts about their life. That was my explanation.
But my friends weren’t buying it.
“You’re depriving people of sharing in your success and you’re blocking other opportunities. If we don’t know what you’re doing how can we tell others who might be interested or might be able to help you?”
And they are right again. That’s what I love about these women. They make me accountable – to myself.
The next day, I received an email from one of my friends:
“Jodie, I’ve been thinking about you all day, and I’ve had a thought about gratitude. It may make it easier for you to share all of these stories with your community and your loved ones if it’s an expression of gratitude rather than you just telling people what you are doing. If something good happens in your life, you show your gratitude by talking about it.”
And then my other friend chimed in with this: “Yes! That’s a wonderful way of looking at it. Gratefulness and appreciation to open the way even further for abundance and more opportunities. That’s so Jodie!”
And they are right. Sharing, in a grateful way, fits with my personal values and the values of my business. It isn’t bragging or boasting, it’s sharing.
I know many other women who struggle with talking about themselves. Perhaps, we can all use gratitude to get over our inhibitions and get on with sharing our successes and creating even more success.
Do you think it would work for you too?