How to Move from Stuck to Unstoppable with Natalie Benamou

Have you ever felt like you weren’t sure which path to take?  This simple question comes up in our lives and career and the way we respond can literally make the difference between success and failure. As the host of HerCsuite® Radio, I will take you on this two-part journey to help you move past feeling stuck and on to being unstoppable.

As a business leader and perpetual opportunity creator (AKA sales generator) the one thing I can tell you is that supercharging your career will still require you to stop along the way, recharge, regroup before moving on. And there will be things that don’t go right.

When I meet with women, one of the first questions I ask is what does success look like for you? The answer can be varied, a new job, promotion, life balance, retirement, finding a board position… Whatever the answer, there is always something behind the answer.

3 Ways Women Feel Stuck:

1. Facing What’s Next.  This isn’t about fear of failure it is about whatever it is that we use to define us. It can be disappointment, losing out on personal income, not being recognized for the work you do. The fear is the most obvious barrier and once you understand it, the next thing is to push it aside and get ready.

    

2. Hesitating When You Are Ready.  Recently I was looking over my skills on LinkedIn. The algorithm for skills has changed and so what used to be recommendations for the work you did (thus the reason if you look me up you will see a lot of endorsements for things like trade shows). If you look at other leaders in your field who have different skills or endorsements, do you second-guess your own list? I know I have more than once.

This is what happens when an opportunity for promotion comes along. We tend to look for at least 90% of having all the skills whereas our male counterparts are feeling happy if they have at least 2-3.

In this case you need to Believe You Are Ready. Women often in conversation have a sense of relief when we unpack their career contributions and overall amazing qualifications to do whatever it is they are looking to achieve.

Not all conversations are about careers. It can be looking for solutions to gain traction. In every instance that feeling like you are ready, comes up and the response you need to tell yourself with confidence is I AM READY.

3. Knowing How to Push Past Barriers. It can be a boss who isn’t recognizing your above and beyond delivery to the growth of the organization. Or a board director who doesn’t believe in your idea and is trying to block you from even being on the quarterly agenda.  

When there is a real barrier, in this case at least one individual, or more, who is not allowing things to go forward, the best strategy is to get curious. This involves you asking questions. For example-after you share your vision, if the response is that the company is not interested in doing this-ask what about the idea is not aligned to our vision or how could we create a nuance to make it more appealing.

The most common barrier I am hearing lately is being stuck at Director Level.  Statistically according to McKinsey, for every one woman who is promoted to Director, two leave the company.  The reason can be as simple as there are a limited number of Director or Vice President Roles and so it may not be possible to move ahead.  The answer for the 66% is to leave. Are you feeling like this is you only option? There may be some other options you haven’t yet considered.

Whatever the barrier, you need to know with confidence why it is important to yourself to move past it. Is it really what you want to see happen? If the answer is yes! You are ready to move to the unstoppable phase.

.3 Keys To Becoming Unstoppable:

1. Believe You Belong.  Mindset is everything and to be unstoppable you must believe you belong.  I have this mindset when reaching out to people in the C-suite. I believe I am fully in the right lane when I have conversations with senior leaders. I never hesitate. While that confidence has helped me in most cases there can be unexpected hurdles. The most important thing is for you to remind yourself. I belong here.
2. Nurture Your Network.  This means that you offer to support the other person and find common synergies. Send articles. Keep in touch.  That will serve you. Twice in my career, I made a fast pivot and it was with one phone call that everything changed. Becoming unstoppable includes having a network where you can add value.
3. Be a Consistent Learner.  When I was in college, I raced sailboats. I developed a unique ability to see the wind shift before any other boat and it helps us make it across the finish line first.  Learning what that nuance was, without realizing it helped me develop a natural desire to learn.  The short answer to learning is to find someone who has had success and find what it was that they were doing and learn those skills.

Discovering Best-Practices

Every Saturday, I attend the live podcast stream with Meridith Elliot Powell and Mark Hunter Sales Logic at 7 AM CT. I learn so much from every experience both from the audience and from the hosts.

You may remember Meridith from a previous podcast “Lean In to Your Customers”

Learning From Leaders:

I am currently reading a book – “Barbie and Ruth” by Robin Gerber. It is so fascinating to learn all the ways Ruth Handler used marketing and sales strategies when she was the only woman in every room. And yet, she always walked out with a yes in most cases. Even when she didn’t win, she would learn and go back and try again. Ruth believed she belonged. She would nurture her Media and PR connections and she was consistently learning about new ideas.

Final Advice:

You have to do 3 things every day to build the unstoppable muscle and include at least one thing that scares you.

Remember, even the most confident people have doubts.  Remove any fear.  Know you are ready and dismantle the barriers. Believe you belong.  You’ve surrounded yourself with the right people and you have learned life lessons throughout your career and life that make you a valuable asset in any room.

I believe in you. You Got This!

Resources:
Find Your People inside HerCsuite® Women's Growth Network
Natalie Benamou LinkedIn
HerCsuite™ LinkedIn

Upcoming Events:

• August 25th Women's Equality Day Event
• September 6th Accelerate HER