You know that confidence is important for you as a Christian woman leader, but how do you become a confident leader? What do you need to know in order to get started?
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In today’s conversation, I’m sharing with you what I believe you need to know about becoming a confident leader. You’ll hear about my very first experience on stage as an insecure child, and how God has transformed me from the inside out.
I’ll be diving into the stages of confident leadership that I have developed, but I also discuss some of the caveats and reminders about this journey of leadership. Finally, I’ll share with you what you need to do in order to take your next steps.
What Happens When You Lack Confidence:
Growing up, I was extremely insecure and I definitely lacked confidence. In this episode, I share the story of my first attempt at performing on stage, which did not go well.
A lack of confidence could also be called:
- Insecurity
- Lack of self-esteem
- Self-doubt
- Fear
- Uncertainty
When you lack confidence, you often do not do the things you sense God asking you to do. You may be worried about what other people think, or you may not feel good enough or qualified to do what He’s asking.
It’s Possible to Become a Confident Leader
Despite my personality and my early experiences as a shy, insecure child, God has brought me on an incredible journey of becoming a leader. But more than the things I’ve been able to do on the outside, what’s more important is what God has done inside of me.
God has given me confidence, and that confidence is what has enabled me to be able to take some of these bigger, scarier steps.
And I believe he can give you confidence, too.
But it doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen by taking some magic pill or just believing in yourself more.
Confidence comes as a result of surrendering to God’s truth, walking in that truth, and then taking action based on that truth. You can hear more about this process in Episode 6: The Importance of Leading with Confidence.
The truth is, becoming a confident leader is a journey, and I believe for most of us, it happens in stages.
But there are a couple caveats to be aware of as you look at becoming a confident leader.
Caveat #1: The journey is not always linear
While I am going to talk about these stages in a linear, step-by-step way, I am fully aware that this is not exactly how the path of leadership looks. In fact, it’s often a lot messier than this.
Caveat #2: Your stage is not your identity
Your stage of confident leadership does not define who you are. It is not your identity.
[bctt tweet=”Your stage of leadership does not define who you are.” username=”_estherdawn”]
It’s kind of like a personality test. A personality test doesn’t tell you everything about you or create your identity. But it gives you information which can help you be more aware of your situation and move forward.
The 5 Stages of Confident Leadership:
The 5 stages of Confident Leadership is something I’ve developed based on what I’ve seen and learned in my own life. It’s not an exhaustive view of leadership, but I hope it’s a helpful perspective for you as a Christian woman leader!
I’m going to give you a broad overview of each stage, and you might be able to determine your stage just by listening.
But if you’d like to take my free quiz to help you, head over to estherlittlefield.com/leaderquiz. You can find out your results and a suggested next step for you. And if you put in your email at the end, I’ll also be giving you some bonus steps, plus you’ll get a PDF download showing the 5 stages.
- Stage 1: The Reluctant Leader
- Stage 2: The Hesitant Leader
- Stage 3: Active Leader
- Stage 4: Purposeful Leader
- Stage 5: Confident Leader
Your confidence comes from God and not from yourself.
Take the quiz now to discover your Confident Leader Stage and get recommendations for next steps.
Reminders about becoming a confident leader
Leadership and this process of going through the stages is not necessarily linear, and once you reach a certain stage, that is not static.
[bctt tweet=”Your leadership journey is not necessarily linear or static.” username=”_estherdawn”]
Keep in mind that this is a journey. I don’t love that I struggled with insecurity when I was younger… but it’s part of what brought me to where I am today. Without the hard parts of our lives, we wouldn’t have as much appreciation for what God has done.
No matter where you are at right now, remember that God loves you, has a purpose for you, and there are people ready to be impacted by YOU.
I believe that our enemy wants to keep you from taking your next steps. But let’s not let Him do that. Let’s begin believing the truth of what God says and the truth of who He is. And then let’s walk in that truth.
[bctt tweet=”Let’s begin believing the truth of what God says and the truth of who He is. And then let’s walk in that truth.” username=”_estherdawn”]
If you want to get started towards understanding what it means to lead with confidence, be sure to go back and listen to Episode 6. In that episode, I explain the 3 core components of leading with confidence to help you work through this.
And if you want to go further, I invite you to check out the Confident Leader Club, where you can go through the Confident Leader Path and work through those 3 phases and establish the beliefs you need and take the action steps to live as a confident leader.
Other Episodes Mentioned:
- Episode 6: The Importance of Leading with Confidence
- Episode 67: The 5 Reasons Confidence Makes You a More Effective Leader
Stay Connected:
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