So many women don’t feel brilliant about their bodies.
Not thin enough, not toned enough, not curvy enough, bum not pert enough, skin not glowing enough, hair that won’t do what you want…the list of complaints is endless.
Only five per cent of women naturally have the body that the media portrays as ideal. And the body that the media portrays has been photoshopped, edited and filtered to within an inch of its life. No wonder it is impossible to think or feel ‘good enough’.
Not feeling great about your body can have a big impact on your career. The latest Dove global survey highlighted that women who don’t feel good about their body feel less confident in the workplace, and that shows up with not putting your ideas forward, not standing up for yourself at times, starving yourself and not having enough energy during the day, not going for promotions, doubting yourself and generally feeling that you aren’t quite good enough.
The effect that this is having on women’s ability to fulfil their potential is substantial and far reaching.
Let’s imagine what might happen if women had solid body confidence. The effect of women liking their bodies would be profound– more confidence, more promotions and wealth, more health, more putting your ideas forward, more standing up for yourself and more brain space to way think about other things. A whole bunch of industries that prey on women’s insecurities might go out of business.
How do you cultivate body confidence?
- Drop body related shame. The opposite of body confidence is not body shyness – no one is wandering about feeling shy about their body. This is a shame vs love issue. Stop looking at anything that feeding your body shame. Filter all your media inputs. Forgive yourself.
- Focus on treating your body as if it has great worth and show it through your actions and words. Upgrade what you put on your body and what you put in your body, to show it that you respect and honour it.
- Shift your focus away from what your body looks like, to having gratitude what it does for you.
About the author
Harriet Waley-Cohen is a speaker and women’s leadership coach. She empowers women to drop overwhelm, self-doubt and destructive patterns of behaviour, to become the most powerful, confident, healthy and successful versions of themselves.
