Phyllis Levinson

View Original

Empowered Women, Powerful Communication

Empowered women speak powerfully.

Speaking powerfully means speaking unapologetically.

One of women’s greatest attributes is caring and empathy. Imagine life without close women friends to celebrate with you during triumphs or support you during tough times. Unimaginable, right?

Unfortunately, we undermine our effectiveness in the world when our caring and empathy get in the way of showing our brilliance. We become more concerned about the feelings of others than about shining.

Nowhere is this more evident than when we communicate, whether it’s to one person or many.

We don’t want to offend anyone. We don’t want to make anyone feel badly. We don’t want to sound “mean.”

Social messaging from childhood tells us to be “nice” and a “good girl.” Those who betray these societal norms get labeled the “B” word. Ugh.

Rock, meet hard place.

However, we can choose how we want to interact with others. It’s not always easy, but it is certainly doable.

Most importantly, we must ditch the preface.

Women too often feel the need to preface statements with “you may not agree with me, but…” or “I don’t know if this will work, but…” This only dilutes your effectiveness and your power before you even get to your point.

Presumably you are speaking to adults who know they can disagree with you, and not every idea or concept is a winner. Just say it.

No apologies. No hedging. No playing small.

Be the BOSS of you. That’s the only “B” word that matters.