Jen Dalitz, business consultant and founder of sphinxx.com.au – the network for business women in leadership, believes that women are their own worst enemy when it comes to realising their full career potential. There are of course many other factors that come into play, some of which are unique to women, but put simply, “Women often just don’t believe in themselves enough”, says Dalitz.

To address this issue, sphinxx is running a new series of events, the sphinxx Ascend development days which aims to significantly boost the confidence levels of businesswomen and help increase the number of women in senior leadership roles. The program is a series of four events throughout the year, in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne (next round in May 2010)

In a recent survey - sphinxx survey of working women - 27 per cent of respondents said they had turned down an offer of a promotion due to a lack of confidence in their ability, while a further 14 per cent had turned down a promotion due to a perceived lack of competence to perform the role.

Both of these last two points are linked: If a woman’s confidence isn’t at its best, nor will her perception be of herself, her skills and her ability to take on a new role.

“In the various leadership and executive roles I held in finance and consulting before I started sphinxx I was always amazed at the difference between men and women when it comes to self promotion”, says Dalitz. “It becomes much more obvious when you are managing teams in the hundreds, and this is when I really noticed the difference. 

“Every week I would have male members of my team dropping by my desk, sending emails or booking coffee meetings to make sure I knew they were ready for their next promotion or to let me know they needed time off for study or travel or family commitments.  Although I had just as many women on my teams, I never heard from them on these points, unless they’d managed to secure another job altogether or they’d decided the work-family-life balancing act was so out of kilter that their only option was to resign.

The thing is this: if someone comes to you and offers you a promotion, they’ve already determined you have the skills and competence to do the job.  Even if you don’t have confidence in yourself, someone else does!  So why not take the job, and the payrise, and live happily ever after?

Clearly it’s not as simple as that.  Research by Catalyst shows that women won’t apply for a job unless they have 90 per cent of the required competencies, whereas men will apply with fewer than 50% of the competencies.  Women on Boards research also shows that 35 per cent of women lack the confidence to apply for a board position.

So what is this research saying?  Women need to get over their nervousness and start believing in themselves.  Carla Zampatti recently told Dalitz: “If you can’t sell yourself then how can you expect anyone else to believe in you and all you are capable of?”

Jen Dalitz’s Tips for Giving Yourself a Shot of Confidence

• Recognise the little wins:  start carrying a journal or notebook with you every day and write down your successes - whether large or small - as they arise.  When it comes to performance review time, or when you just need a shot of confidence, you can read through your (very long) list of achievements and see for yourself how great you can be!
• Create a forum to get other women together for brainstorming and discussion groups on the common challenges women face in getting ahead.  Brown bag lunches in the office, teleconferences and even a causal coffee all work well. Negotiation, innovation, communication and personal branding are all good topics to get you started.
• Get a mentor or a role model you can ask for advice and to work through tricky situations with.  Girlfriends are also a good substitute for mentors, if you prefer.
• Do some professional development, formal study or qualifications - but beware: Australian women are among the most qualified in the world.  It’s what you do with your new found knowledge that matters.  Make sure people know about it at work and in your professional networks.
• Network.  Did you know that about 80% of all job appointments are made before they are even advertised?  That goes for internal and external appointments, so you should be spending just as much time on internal networking (with peers, clients, suppliers etc) as meeting people outside of your business.
• Get involved in programs that support the advancement of women - as a participant or a contributor. The more you socialise with other women that are going through the same issues, the more shortcuts you’ll pick up and the more you’ll realise you’re capable of (we see in others what we are best at).

sphinxx runs a leadership program that brings together senior women in business - and many other organisations do too. Check out the Networking page on sphinxx.com.au for a list of the networking groups and organisations that hold regular networking and development events.

The SheEO! Jen Dalitz is obsessed with getting more women into leadership roles, in our workplaces, businesses and communities. That’s why she started sphinxx and why she writes about, speaks about, mentors and consults on topics relating to women in business. As an executive and business consultant, Jen experienced first hand the challenges women face as they climb the corporate ladder; and the impact on the bottom line when female talent is under-utilised. She created sphinxx to support women on their leadership journey, and to help employers in retaining and developing their high potential women. Sphinxx provides support and services to assist businesswomen in managing their work and life priorities, and leadership development to help them scale the heights in their careers. For more information or comment from Jen Dalitz, please contact Sophie Cross on 0421 996810 or email sophie@prchicks.com.au