Connect with us at: communicationskillsforwomen@gmail.com Rosemay Webster on LinkedIn Elizabeth Amorino on LinkedIn We'd LOVE to hear from you. Take the free Communication Skills Gap Quiz Confidence Comes After You Start with Makeda Boehm What if confidence isn’t something you need before you take the leap—but something you build by taking it? In this episode of Communicate Connect Thrive, we sit down with Makeda Boehm, Strategic AI and Digital Workforce Architect and founder of Seed & Society, to explore why confidence comes from participation, not perfection. Makeda’s unconventional career journey took her from earning her GED at 16 and working as a teacher to breaking into enterprise technology sales, closing nearly $10 million in deals, and building her own business using AI-powered systems. Along the way, she learned that confidence doesn’t come from waiting until you feel ready. It comes from showing up, taking action, and gathering evidence of what you’re capable of doing. If you’ve ever second-guessed yourself, waited for the perfect moment, or wondered whether you’re qualified enough to pursue your next opportunity, this conversation is for you. In This Episode, We Discuss: Why so many women wait to feel confident before taking action. How to move forward when imposter syndrome and self-doubt show up. What an “evidence library” is and how it helps build lasting confidence. How to advocate for yourself, pursue promotions, and take up space in rooms where you feel like an outsider. How taking action can help women embrace entrepreneurship, new technology, and unfamiliar opportunities. How AI can help service-based business owners reclaim their time and build more sustainable businesses. Are You Holding Yourself Back? Maybe you’re waiting to apply for the promotion, raise your rates, speak up in a meeting, launch your business, or try something new because you don’t feel ready yet. For working women, self-doubt can show up as: Imposter syndrome: Feeling like you have to prove yourself more than everyone else before you deserve a seat at the table. Perfectionism: Overpreparing, overthinking, and delaying action until everything feels just right. Fear of failure: Worrying that one mistake will undermine your credibility or confirm your doubts about yourself. Difficulty advocating for yourself: Struggling to ask for a raise, negotiate compensation, share your accomplishments, or set higher rates. The pressure to prove your worth: Feeling that you must work harder, know more, or be more qualified than your peers to be taken seriously. Career transition anxiety: Wondering whether you can succeed when stepping into a new role, industry, leadership position, or business venture. Technology overwhelm: Feeling behind or intimidated by AI and other emerging tools. The confidence gap: Knowing you have something valuable to offer but hesitating to make yourself visible or pursue the next opportunity. Two Takeaways to Put Into Practice 1. Confidence is a result, not a requirement. Choose one thing you’ve been waiting to feel ready for and take the smallest possible step toward it this week. You don’t have to eliminate your fear before you begin. 2. Build an evidence library. Start collecting proof of your capabilities. Save the positive feedback, successful presentations, completed projects, difficult conversations you navigated, goals you achieved, and moments when you did something that once intimidated you. When self-doubt creeps in, revisit that evidence. You don’t have to rely on how confident you feel in the moment. You can remind yourself of what you’ve already done. Connect with Makeda Boehm Learn more about Makeda’s work in AI, digital workforce systems, and helping service-based business owners reclaim their time. Website: https://seedandsociety.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/makedaboehm Explore her Free AI Employee Report, More Money & Time Labs, and the Seed & Society Podcast. Your Challenge This Week What is one thing you’ve been waiting to feel confident enough to do? Take one small step toward it this week. Send the email. Speak up in the meeting. Submit the application. Share the idea. Start the project. Stop waiting for confidence to arrive. Start building the evidence that you can do hard things. If this episode resonates with you, share it with a woman who needs a reminder that she doesn’t have to feel ready to get started. Follow Communicate Connect Thrive for more conversations about communication, connection, and thriving at work and in life. Speak clearly. Listen bravely.