Let Your Light Shine—Owning Your Value & Leaving Playing Small Behind - #10

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. -Matthew 5:16

Key Takeaways in This Newsletter:

• Keeping your light to yourself deprives you and others of the goodness that your experiences hold. 

• Your confidence in what you have to offer will rise as you pour into what you enjoy and are naturally good at instead of dividing your attention with weaker areas that are fine just as they are.

• Humility is not synonymous to unworthiness, you can be humble and accepting of the greatness that comes with your achievements. 

Click here to obtain the associated worksheet for cognitive reinforcement.

It’s easier to complain, criticize, and comply with subpar leadership than it is to leave fear behind and turn the spotlight on yourself and the work that you do. It can be intimidating to step out of the shadows and proclaim to those around you that you are capable of doing the thing… 

The level of vulnerability that comes with choosing to stop playing small and subjecting yourself to the scrutiny of others is something that only impactful professionals understand.

And you can bet that they will tell you that doing it scared is the only way your world changes.

You are someone who can inspire and uplift by shining your light boldly and displaying your unique brilliance.

The Cost of Playing Small

Are you aware of how much you leave on the table when you don’t attempt to exist in your full potential?

Much like a lighthouse, your life and experience can serve as guidance to someone looking to successfully travel a similar path.

You may not be aware of the possible impact if you’ve never considered how valuable your experience can really be. If you feel like it’s not a big deal; it’s likely others will overlook it as well. Most of us have been conditioned to believe that being humble means downplaying your achievements and contributions. However, humility isn’t about minimizing your worth but owning your value without the need for constant validation from others. 

There’s also the mistake of equating your success to the material things such as titles, salaries, and other things you’ve added to yourself over the years. What about the parts we can’t see? Like your mental toughness, spiritual fortitude, resiliency, conflict resolution, etc. Those things are worth more than gold and are valued as such by the right people.

My Personal Journey to Reclaiming My Light: What it Takes to Emerge from the Shadows

After a good start to my entrepreneurial journey, I like most people ran into some life-altering circumstances that discouraged me from continuing with my plans. I discovered I no longer saw myself as the person who had accomplished so much just a few years earlier. My inner critic was winning every battle it entered and in turn I chose that the shadows were safer than rebuilding my confidence in the light.

I learned from that experience that I am human and I am not expected to get it right all the time–I too make mistakes and am deserving of empathy. This allowed me to shed my perfectionism and welcome the rebuild. Noticing the impact that it had on people around me who were witnessing my resiliency was encouraging and oftentimes gave me added fuel to not give up on my dreams.

This didn’t happen overnight, I had to shed the shame that came with a perceived failure. I had to get comfortable with the uncomfortable feeling that came with bringing attention to myself as I felt like I wasn’t ready to step back into thought leadership. There were so many days where I wanted to forget that I ever had a vision for my life and the people in my community–when God calls you honey there’s no running away…

That’s why you’re here reading this–you know it’s time to get back to it just as I knew. 

It’s so easy to become consumed by the shoulda, woulda, couldas–let them go. 

You can do this by taking things one day at a time and offering yourself grace as you learn this new version of yourself. It’s important to recognize that life changes you and sometimes those changes require you to have more patience with yourself. The pressure to perform will likely be due to consuming hustle culture content; don’t discount the value in curating a physical and virtual environment that allows you to navigate this time in your career accordingly.

This newsletter is proof that it will and can get better but you must DECIDE. I made a decision and have not looked back. Will you do the same?

Don’t be fooled by the obstacles in your life, your contributions are necessary and if you will take the initiative in building your career, the spotlight will come.

5 Suggestions to Embrace Your Full Value

1. Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable: Uneasiness is expected when you’re moving forward with shining your light; you’re likely making moves that are not familiar to you as your current self. Those are the moves that allow you to grow and embody the energy that magnetizes great opportunities, relationships, and partnerships.

2. Pick Your “Thing” and Run With It: You can attract a lot more attention by being great at one thing rather than spreading yourself thin and never mastering anything. Don’t dilute your impact by trying to be all the things to all the people–focus on your unique strengths and passions.

3. Your Story is Unique; Your Value is Too: Your way of life and how it has unfolded up until this point is what positions you to be an asset. The obstacles you’ve overcome, the lessons you’ve learned, and the perspective you have to offer should be celebrated and recognized by you.

4. Humility Shouldn’t Equate Being Undeserving: Being humble should not diminish your contributions or be the premise of an underwhelming career narrative for you. Your strengths and accomplishments, no matter how seemingly small to you, are valuable to someone else.

5. Shrinking Isn’t Doing You or Your Impact Any Favors: Value is the name of the game and presenting what you have is how you cosign on your growth and development. When you hide your value you undermine your ability to be a positive influence as well.

Closing Thoughts

You have to be the first person who believes that you have a light worth sharing; don’t wait for someone else to confirm what you already know about yourself. Say no to downplaying your contributions, deflecting compliments, and feeling as if someone else is better equipped than you. There is someone out there who would benefit from knowing who you are…do you believe that?

You can not only transform your own life as you get acquainted with authentic, bold leadership but you can also empower others to do the same. The scripture noted here reminds us that you can make this place a better place just by vowing to showcase the greatness within. Never feel like you don’t have something worth sharing with the world, let your light shine. 

Hey, I'm MiMi--thanks for reading this newsletter. 

My thoughts are derived from personal experience and years of writing resumes, coaching high-achieving professionals in leadership, and preparing those who aspired to enter leadership roles. I am on a mission to address the mental roadblocks that discourage well-intentioned professionals from creating a career that empowers them despite being more than qualified on paper. My method is rooted in faith and  heavily concentrated on holding a mirror up to your career to identify negative thought patterns and limiting beliefs that threaten the depth of your impact.

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