Beaver & Bee Book Pick: Playing Big By Tara Mohr
Do you grapple with an inner critic in your head which pipes up whenever you stray beyond your comfort zone?
Are you caught in a cycle of self-doubt which stops you moving forward with the things that truly matter to you?
Is fear in the driving seat for your decisions, actions or behaviour?
Playing Big by Tara Mohr is an eye-opening book for women wanting to pursue their aspirations – whether in your career, community, or passions outside of work BUT self-doubt is holding you back because you fail to recognise your own brilliance.
Tara offers inspirational yet very practical insights into how to take your passion to the next level.
Here are some of our key learnings from this book:
Recognise your harsh inner critic voice and replace with a more nurturing inner mentor
The inner critic can be particularly prominent for women because of societal conditioning and expectations about what women should and shouldn’t be doing. The inner mentor is a more nurturing, calm and wise voice that comes from within - this can be more powerful than an external mentor because it is always there and avoids the common issue of being lost in others’ opinions. Some find it helpful to visualise the inner mentor as a wise version of yourself twenty years in the future.
Communicate with power
Be conscious of littering emails using habitual phrases such as “just” (“I just think”) or unnecessary apologies (“sorry to bother you but…”) which minimise what you have to say. Think about undermining disclaimers or substituting questions for a statement “I would love to hear your reactions to this - let me know what you think” rather than “Does this make sense?”.
Let go of the “objective expert” persona
You don't need to minimise your personal stories by feeling the need to be an “objective expert” – far from being unprofessional, telling your own tales can inform minds AND change hearts. A firm division between the professional and personal is an outdated idea. You can bring your whole self to your business - your work or business offering is unique because it has been influenced by your personality and your life experiences. Authenticity and vulnerability is how our work finds its spark and power - don’t omit your own story!
Be conscious of hiding strategies
Tara also highlights ways in which we unconsciously delay “playing bigger” which we’re sure you’ll resonate with as business owners!
“This before that” - having a fixed idea on what order things have to be done to reach your goal “I need a fancy website before I can teach Pilates”
“Overcomplicating "- adding element after element of “necessary” additions to a project so you never finish and put it out there. We don’t always need to build something large and complex - simple can be more than enough and many thriving businesses offer one basic service or product.
“Designing at the whiteboard” - staying in a safe space of diligently and carefully brainstorming and creating a business or idea in isolation instead of obtaining more immediate feedback from the people you are trying to reach. You can easily get stuck endlessly refining and still not know how to take it forward!
“Playing Big” doesn’t mean more money, a bigger empire or fame; it’s about the freedom to go for the opportunities that bring joy and fulfilment – whatever they are to you. This ethos is absolutely at the heart of Beaver & Bee Chartered Accountants.
It is a great book for anyone but we would highly recommend to any woman-in-business.
Have you read this book? Please share your thoughts in the comments!
If you’re looking for a like-minded female accountant please get in touch - we’d love to hear about you and your business!
