It is likely that you and everyone you work with has valuable contributions to make. Whether in meetings, working on projects, dealing with clients, or in any daily responsibility. Why is it then, that I often hear from leaders who share that their direct reports don’t speak up, or my clients share that they don’t feel the confidence to “use their voice” and want to change that dynamic?

It is so important, not only for an individual, but for the organization, to ensure they have a culture that encourages contribution and participation from all. Yet, this is often not the case.

This challenge shows up in a variety of situations:

• Not sharing your opinions or perspectives in meetings
• When one is new to a team, or new to an organization, they may feel that they need to navigate the “right” time to speak up.
• Many find it challenging to self-promote or ask for recognition.
• Often during a performance review cycle. Individuals hold back from sharing everything they really want to claim as successes

All too often, I witness individuals not wanting to appear too knowledgeable or come across as self-promoting. In doing so, they are not only hurting themselves, but by not showing up fully or sharing the best version of themselves with their colleagues and their organization, their colleagues and organization miss out on all they have to offer.

When one stops and considers what values they have to offer if they were to fully show up and share, they might then realize the importance of doing so in order to provide full value to their team and organization. This recognition is often the catalyst for those people to share more openly.

When we get curious to understand what holds us back from speaking up or self-promoting – the answer might be one of many different possibilities:

• Limiting beliefs such as – “no one wants to hear from me,” or “I’m not going to have more to contribute than my colleagues”
• Fear of judgment – this could come from an “old place,” or it could be a sign that the culture is potentially toxic and/or that psychological safety isn’t prevalent
• Lack of confidence
• Fear of engaging in conflict (even though we know healthy discourse drives positive results)
• And more…

What do you want to do to ensure you are bringing your best self forward in your next meeting or review? What do you want to do to encourage others to share more openly? Looking to explore more? Let’s connect.

“Finding your voice is about having the confidence to know you matter so you can use your voice.” – Cammi Granato