The Courage To Know Your Worth

Have you ever known in your heart that you had to step up and own your worth? Maybe you were being treated with disrespect, taken advantage of, or in an abusive relationship.

I had a situation recently where I was asked to do something for less compensation than I knew I was worth. I knew that I was being given a life lesson I had not fully learned: to speak up, own, and then declare my worth. I was so scared!  I didn’t want to be rejected. Having lived a lifetime of swallowing my opinion to keep peace, or taking poor treatment knowing it was wrong, I couldn’t accept less, not this time.  So I spent 4 hours crafting an email detailing what I would need to accept the offer being presented to me. I detailed everything I had done to prepare for this position, even before being put on the payroll. I outlined my qualifications, my ideas, what I had to offer, which included my heart and soul. Writing this email was good for me.  It solidified who I am and what I am worth.  Honestly, I think it is the first time in 62 years that I owned who I am and mustered the courage to declare it. AND IT FEELS GREAT!

Well, guess what? What I had to offer was rejected!  Honestly, I was disappointed and relieved. I was disappointed because I know I would have brought a tremendous amount of value, creativity, and high quality products to the venue.  I was relieved because I don’t want to work with people who don’t see my full value.  

It took a couple of days to process. I had to work to get to the point where I could truly see it as a blessing.  I trust that God will provide me with other opportunities where I can shine, share my gifts and generate a healthy income.

How about you? Do you have the courage to own your worth, despite the risk of it being rejected?  I’d love to hear your story.  If you are working on building courage, I hope my experience helps you.

The biggest take away is that other peoples’ opinion or definition of you doesn’t matter. ALL THAT MATTERS IS THAT YOU KNOW AND STAND IN YOUR WORTH.