It’s a sad fact for many business women, but the current levels of self-belief you have, for yourself and your business, are often the biggest stumbling block you’ll face in your overall success.

Whether you’re a work-from-home mum, juggling work and home, or an older VA who’s looking to make the transition from redundancy to self-employment, we simply want business success – but are often guilty of selling ourselves short, due to a lack of belief in our abilities.

So, here’s some helpful tips you can utilise, to stop selling yourself short and start believing in yourself again.

#1: Have the self-belief that you can do this!

I know this is often easier said than done, but try it. Stop telling yourself you can’t do it. In fact, remove the words ‘I can’t’ from your vocabulary and replace them with the mantra ‘I can do this!’ or ‘I’ve got this!’. Write it down, pin it up and read it several times throughout the day, until it becomes second nature to you.

#2: What if you weren’t scared, unsure and unable…?

We’re great at finding reasons not to do something that makes us feel uncomfortable. But you know what? Stretching your comfort zone and learning new things is uncomfortable – until it isn’t. And the only way it gets comfortable, is to do it. A way through those uncomfortable, scared and unsure feelings is to ask yourself: What if I wasn’t scared, unsure and unable? Would I do this and how would that feel?

#3: Stop believing you don’t know how and instead, look to find a way

Using the phrase ‘I don’t know how’ just keeps you stuck and blocked from finding an answer. Instead, tell yourself that you’ll find out. Very little is genuinely unsolvable. By telling yourself you’ll find a way, you’re opening yourself up to finding the solution that IS out there for you – and you’re much more likely to actually go and look for it!

#4: Each step forward, is still a step forward

You don’t have to build an empire overnight. Want to earn a set figure each month? Every payment you receive, is a step in the right direction. Want to build a community? Each person you connect with, is a step in the right direction. Every step forward, is taking you in the right direction, no matter how big or small.

#5: Value your abilities and your time

You’ve gone through a lot, to get where you are. Whether you’ve notched up qualifications or expertise, you’ve had to go through a huge learning curve, to get where you are – and you are your business. When you value your journey, your abilities and the time it took you to get to this point, you’ll be less likely to start discounting your prices as soon as someone hesitates in saying yes to your services.

Not been a VA long? You may have previous PA or administrative experience, could currently be studying your way through an accredited course, and may even have spent hours using trial and effort on your own website, services and packages, to get to the stage where you can now offer your expertise to others. Honour the journey you’ve been on, and realise the value of your abilities and your time.

Self-belief isn’t something that we all naturally have. However, if you follow the tips above, you’ll be taking steps to ensure you stop selling yourself short. You’ll not only start to believe and value yourself, your abilities and your time – but also, if you value those things, your clients will too.

Have you found today’s tips on self-belief helped you in some way? Maybe you’ve been struggling to see your value or have been selling yourself short and dropping your prices? What action steps are you going to take away from today? I’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s tips – so why not leave a comment in the box below!

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