None of us are perfect, and personal development and enrichment should always be a primary goal.

It’s one thing for someone else to question your worth or debate whether you are deserving. However, what we must cease doing is engaging in this very destructive behavior ourselves.

Did you work hard?

Did you earn it?

Did you meet or exceed the established qualifications?

Is this opportunity really what you want?

Understand this, in many cases, you are not the problem.

Instead, situations in which we often find ourselves are often problematic.

It is difficult to feel as though you belong in spaces that were not designed with you in mind and are not eager to witness change.

My first encounter with this perceived imposter syndrome involved a corporate exec at a client site in GA, who, upon my arrival, refused to allow me to lead a meeting with his team because I wasn’t who he was expecting.

It took all of a minute for me to come to grips with the reality that the issue at hand was not mine. Not at all.

Someone said, “Go to HR!” Well, there was no HR at the time. Fortunately, I was afforded the opportunity to establish the organization’s HR division a few years later and was determined to never sit in silence should a similar circumstance arise.

Now in my own business, I get to help other BIPOC women who lack allies, mentors, and sponsors navigate some of the challenges they face in corporate spaces.

“The answer to overcoming imposter syndrome is not to fix individuals but to create an environment that fosters a variety of leadership styles and in which diverse racial, ethnic, and gender identities are seen as just as professional as the current model, which Tina Opie, a Babson College professor describes as usually “Eurocentric, masculine, and heteronormative.”

As a certified life coach, one area of personal development that I am committed to with clients is their mindset. It is essential to our overall mental health to protect our energy and peace in all corners of our lives.

It was a heartwarming sight to witness my Senator, Cory Booker,  reassure Judge Jackson of these critical things.

.

SELF-CARE 101:

REPEAT THIS MESSAGE EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK:

You are worthy.

You’ve earned this.

Nobody is gonna steal your joy.

God has got you.

Adjust your crown accordingly.