Give Yourself Permission To Be Awesome (And Stop Letting Detractors Define Your Capabilities)

The best thing I ever did in my career was back myself to try new things and become a bigger, better and brighter version of who I thought I was.

Sydney Morning Herald reporting on my old workplace. My support goes out to Simon Gandevia!

When One Person’s Opinion Shrinks Who You Are

Today I was reading about the ongoing scandal at my old workplace NeuRA, and it reminded me of the time a new executive there who stated I should leave to go to another workplace.

People sometimes ask me why I started working for myself as a communications specialist, and why I blend this skillset with comedy.

I’d love to be able to say something noble.

But perhaps it’s more because I feel like my career was a comedy of errors than anything else.

Or perhaps it has been the result of workplace trauma that led to unexpected growth.

What has surprised me is how many of us make massive changes to our lives and self-perceptions because of workplace trauma.

In fact, I see workplace trauma raised a LOT during my career coaching sessions.

Talented, hardworking people who are changing careers not because they’re running toward new opportunities, but because they’re escaping crappy workplaces.

Often, these people work with me because their confidence has been dented.

And I work with them to develop a ‘personal brand revitalisation’ so they regain confidence and absolutely slay during job interviews, meetings, presentations and much more.

Working Behind the Curtain (And What It Teaches You)

I’ve had many fantastic managers. And my role as a media adviser meant I often had to work with the head honchos many levels above me.

My job was to help shape them into better communicators.

It was tough. I learned a lot from the experience.

And while I was their adviser, I managed to keep negative stories about them out of the news.

It helped me develop skills to craft personal brands for other people - which I now do for many of my clients.

And interestingly, the top boss at four of five of my past workplaces - where I was trying to prevent reputation damage - have since had significant clouds raised about them.

What’s interesting is that each of these individuals tried to put limitations on me and define what I was capable of.

They did the same thing to many talented and hardworking staff.

I saw so many of these awesome colleagues leave. And they went off to flourish elsewhere.

I eventually left too.

The Power of Starting Fresh (and Backing Yourself Again)

My biggest learning? Each time I went into a new environment, I grew because of new opportunities.

In new roles, I gave myself permission to be better and shine brighter.

And to my surprise, people around me accepted that.

It felt like going to a new school and starting afresh.

But the key element was that I backed myself, rather than accepting the limitations others put on me.

It was really, really hard.

So if you’re feeling stuck, or maybe even trapped, consider whether you can give yourself permission to try something new and be a bolder version of yourself.

Feeling a bit downbeat because of how others are defining you? Let’s develop a PR plan together to help you shine and find greener pastures elsewhere.