Fear

A client and I had a discussion over coffee last week about the importance of expertise. Once of my mantras is that my clients must identify their area of expertise and claim it in their industry. It is a crucial component of standing out from the competition.

This particular client is one of the smartest people I know. She has a master’s degree and much experience in her industry. She admitted however, that claiming to be an expert still makes her feel a bit fearful. Although she does in fact have much expertise, once you claim it, there is some pressure to live up to it. And yes, that can be scary.

Another friend of mine, who has his doctorate and also a wealth of experience, shared that he feels the same way.

Our fears can hold us back. We are afraid because we don’t know what issues our clients might come at us with – what if we don’t know how to help them? We don’t know what scenarios we’ll encounter in a day – what if we really can’t handle it? What you can do is trust your experience and walk in the confidence of that trust. Believe me, you won’t have all of the answers before you move forward. (It would be nice if we did, wouldn’t it?) You will have to step out in confidence before you can see just how skilled you are. Once you do, and you are able to live it out, you will see where you need to refine, and then continue forward. You can’t refine something if you don’t claim anything. Do not be hesitant to claim your expertise on account of fear – it will only lead you in a backwards direction.