Does self-worth equal net-worth? And particularly where women are concerned? Well according to Suze Orman (U.S. Personal Finance Guru) it most certainly does.
Self-worth is defined as “the sense of one’s own value or worth as a person; self-esteem; self-respect and self-confidence”.
Whereas net-worth is defined as “the total assets of a business (or individual) minus their total liabilities.”
So where is the correlation? Well for women in particular we seem to be very good at devaluing both ourselves and what we have to offer. The reasons we do this vary, but the outcome is usually the same.
When we devalue ourselves this mantra gets syphoned down into our businesses where we then devalue what we do or what we offer. As a result, this directly effects what we charge and how we price. We become “on sale” and discount our prices, we over-deliver, or we hesitate to chase up payment. This means our businesses aren’t as successful and we make less money, all the while making us feel worse about ourselves. And so the vicious cycle continues.
So why do we do this? Well Sylvia Chierchia from Money Made Beautiful discusses how women constantly question… “Am I good enough? Do I know enough? Can I charge that much? Should I offer more?” Couple these feelings with the “uncomfortableness” many of us suffer when it comes to having the “money conversation” and it all becomes a recipe for our own disaster.
So how should we combat this? Well, there’s a few ways. Firstly we need to look internally and challenge ourselves to question our inner critic. Sylvia Chiechia says… “That voice in your head that says mean things to you… come to realise that none of these thoughts are true. AT ALL! The only thing it does, if you let it, is limit your happiness, your drive, your tenacity and ultimately your income. These thoughts don’t serve you, so let them go.”
Suze Overman suggests there are 3 simple ways to boost your self-worth and says these are:
- Do it the hard way
Instead of avoiding tough tasks and challenges, meet them head on. Even when you’re not 100 per cent sure as to what the outcome will be. Remember the last time you learnt a new skill, or beat your personal best at the gym? This is similar – broadly, it’s called task-based learning. This particular strategy can also have direct financial impacts.
- Break down long term goals and celebrate the milestones
Many life goals, including financial ones, can seem impossible at the outset. Many people feel down when they can’t see the end in sight. That’s why it’s important to break long term goals down and allow yourself to feel good about achieving the smaller goals. Always remember, a big victory is made up of many smaller wins.
- Learn to accept compliments
As children, we’re taught to be modest and humble about our achievements. Unfortunately, as adults, this means some people are particularly bad at accepting compliments. They brush them off, or try to direct the attention elsewhere. Subconsciously though, this means they’re not giving themselves due credit. Which is an important building block of self-worth.
The chances are you’re already doing great things, you just haven’t allowed yourself to acknowledge them. If you start being conscious of these three simple ways to boost your self-worth you will be on your way to increasing your net worth. Always plan and invest wisely in yourself and remember, people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan.
On that last note then, planning for yourself and your business is a key concept that women are inherently good at, yet don’t do nearly as often as we should. Ever found yourself thinking “do as I say not as I do?”
If you have a plan, a system, a strategy, then failing becomes less likely and the confidence in what you want, will grow.
So if we can follow these steps, challenge our inner critic, and seek a plan and a strategy for what we want to achieve, we should be well on our way to not only greater self-worth, but in turn, greater net-worth!
