Being with Amazing Women, Feeling Small
Last week I had the opportunity to attend a panel discussion with three amazing women I look up to. Women who are making an impact, who are recognized, who are admired. While I sat there listening to their stories, I started feeling anxious. My body wanted to get up and leave. I felt like I could not breathe. I heard a voice in my head grew louder and louder.
There I was, listening to these amazing women and thinking maybe I could be like them one day. I admired their stories, hoping that one day I would get to tell mine. But what did I have to offer? These women had qualities I did not have. Who was I to think I belonged there?
Why was I having these thoughts? Why are we so hard on ourselves? Why do we judge ourselves so much? Why do we minimize who we are?
After I got married I left the corporate world and became a stay-at-home mom. My reason was that I wanted to support my spouse while we built a business and I also wanted to care for my baby. But maybe, in my personal journey, I was just afraid to grow myself. Maybe I was afraid that I would not make it if I launched my own business or maybe I wouldn’t climb the corporate ladder. Staying at home felt and looked comfortable. It was something I had seen my mom do, and I guess I believed I would be good at it. It was something I was used to.
Do not hear what I am not saying. Having done it, I believe it is one of the most underappreciated and most rewarding jobs we can do as wives and moms.
And after my divorce I could not do that anymore. I had to challenge myself, get a job, and start a business. Now here I was at this panel discussion learning from the best. These were women who had also faced challenges to get to where they were. Who didn’t have recognition handed to them. They earned it. And my mind was telling me I had no right to think that one day I could get there.
Why was I thinking and feeling these things? Did I really believe I could not achieve greatness? I read in a book recently that we are often afraid. Afraid to be seen or to not be seen. Afraid to be with someone or to be without someone. Afraid to succeed or to fail. We allow fear to take control.
I know I will not be exactly like those amazing women, because God made me unique. Maybe my impact will not be as big as theirs, or maybe it will. All I know is that I will keep walking this path. That I cannot give up, just because my mind tells me otherwise.
In the past, I might have rushed out as soon as it was over, but not this time. I stayed and chatted with other women, afterwards. The imposter voice will always try to keep us comfortable, and when it senses that we are stretching ourselves it will step in and try to talk us out of it. It will make us doubt who we were meant to be.
The truth is that to grow and become the best version of ourselves, we have to surround ourselves with women who are ahead of us. And every time we do, we will feel like the smallest one in the group. And that’s the point, when we feel small, we should strive to become better, not curl up and keep feeling small. I am not confirming that we are small, but what I am saying is that we get to have the opportunity to grow and get out of our comfort zone.
The more you are aware of that voice, the more you encounter it, the more you will be able to calm it down. It is not easy, but you have full authority over it. When God made us in His image, He gave us authority over everything, including our minds. We are in full control. It’s time for you to regain it. Stop letting the imposter voice lead.
I always tell my kids, don’t do not do something because you can’t, don’t do it because you don’t want to. If being surrounded by amazing, powerful, influential women makes you doubt yourself, makes you feel uncomfortable, then that is exactly where you need to be.
When you encounter the imposter voice, here are three steps you can take:
Listen to it and become aware of how it feels in your body.
Allow the emotions to run their course. Acknowledge them.
Stand on what God says about you and His truth. You were made unique, powerful, and beautiful. Denying that is saying He made a mistake, and He makes no mistakes.
Love yourself for the woman you were, the woman you are, and the woman you will be.
We are in this together.
Blessings.
Until soon,
Aracely Chavez
Founder of Seven Streams CashFlow
Seven Streams CashFlow is more than a platform for wealth-building tools and youth entrepreneurship skills. It is a faith-driven movement and a thriving community where like-minded families grow, give, and build legacy together.
Seven Streams CashFlow was born out of a personal mission to rebuild life, finances, and legacy after divorce, not just for myself but with my two boys by my side. What started as a way to teach my kids about faith, money, and business turned into a powerful movement that equips families everywhere to do the same. Together we created more than a platform. We created a vision for the next generation.
Check out SevenStreamsCashFlow.com to find out who we are.
