Bridging the Confidence Gap: Empowering Women to Overcome Self-Doubt

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Do you ever feel like you're capable of more but find yourself holding back or second-guessing your abilities? You're not alone. In this episode of Living the Whole Picture, Jama Pantel dives deep into the "confidence gap," a common issue among high-achieving women who doubt their potential despite their accomplishments.

Drawing from her personal experiences in politics and entrepreneurship, Jama candidly shares why women often underestimate themselves and practical tips to build authentic confidence. If you're tired of playing small and ready to step boldly into your power, this episode is your roadmap to overcoming self-doubt and owning your voice.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – What is the Confidence Gap and how it impacts women
• 02:03 – Jama’s personal story of overcoming self-doubt in a male-dominated career
• 03:03 – Understanding why women hold themselves back: perfectionism, societal expectations, and fear of judgment
• 05:02 – Practical strategies to bridge your confidence gap
• 05:30 – Reframing your inner dialogue for growth and empowerment
• 06:03 – Why intentionally leaning into discomfort accelerates confidence
• 07:03 – Celebrating small wins as stepping stones to success
• 07:32 – Building your "confidence squad" and finding supportive communities
• 08:15 – Why confidence is a skill anyone can develop with practice
• 09:38 – How you can take immediate action to start bridging your confidence gap

Key Takeaways:

• The Confidence Gap is the tendency for capable women to doubt their own worth or hesitate despite being highly qualified.
• Perfectionism and societal conditioning often pressure women to remain silent unless they feel perfectly qualified.
• Fear of judgment prevents many women from speaking up and being visible in their careers and personal lives.
• Practical actions like reframing self-talk, leaning into discomfort, celebrating small victories, and building a supportive network can significantly boost your confidence.
• Confidence is not innate, but rather a skill developed through intentional practice and persistence.

Ready to take action?

Pick one courageous act today—share your story, speak up in a meeting, or post something authentic online—and tag Jama on social media to celebrate your brave step forward.

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🌟 Connect with Jama Pantel:
Visit jamapantel.com for more resources, courses, and inspiration on building your powerful presence.

https://www.jamapantel.com

Episode Transcript

Jama Pantel (00:00):
Have you ever felt like you're capable of so much
more but somehow find yourselfplaying small, holding back or
second-guessing your own voice?
Listen closely.
Confidence isn't something somewomen magically have and others
just don't.
It's built, it's earned, andtoday we're bridging that gap
together.
Let's stop holding ourselvesback and start owning the

(00:21):
powerful presence we deserve.
Hey y'all, welcome back toLiving the Whole Picture, the
podcast for ambitious womenready to elevate their
visibility, build authenticconfidence and become the face
of their brand.
I'm your host, Jama Pantel, aluxury portrait photographer,
author, educator, influencer anddream chaser here to help you
master your brand presence andshow up authentically with

(00:44):
confidence.
Each week, we'll dive intotopics to help you shine in
business and in life, so you canstop hesitating and start
showing up like the leader youwere meant to be.
If you've ever struggled withconfidence on camera or
hesitated to put yourself outthere, this podcast is for you.
Let's get started on living thewhole picture together.
Today, we're diving deep intosomething I like to call the

(01:06):
confidence gap.
It's real, it's frustrating andit's holding too many of us
back from stepping into thespotlight and truly shining.
So let's jump right in.
Today we're tackling this issuethat so many of us feel, but
rarely speak openly about what Icall the confidence gap.
Of us feel, but rarely speakopenly about what I call the

(01:28):
confidence gap.
Simply put, the confidence gapis the tendency for women, even
those who are incrediblytalented, educated and
successful, to underestimatethemselves, second-guess their
qualifications and hold backtheir brilliance in spaces where
their voices need to be heardthe most.
How many times have you foundyourself overthinking a
situation, hesitating to speakup during meetings or even

(01:49):
backing away from opportunitiessimply because you weren't 100%
sure you were qualified?
If you're not in your headright now, trust me, you're not
alone.
I'm going to share somethingvery personal with y'all right
now.
Early in my career, when I wasworking in politics, I often
walked into rooms where I wasthe youngest person and

(02:10):
frequently the only female.
Despite my education,experience and the incredible
ideas I wanted to contribute.
My self-doubt would creep in,whispering those damaging little
thoughts.
They'll think I'm too young,they won't take me seriously.
And what if I embarrass myself?
I held back my own voice, mypresence and my potential

(02:31):
because I allowed these internalmessages to dictate my actions.
It wasn't until I saw malecolleagues confidently asserting
themselves without hesitation,even if their ideas weren't half
as good that it finally clickedfor me.
Why was I holding myself backwhile others boldly stepped
forward?
The truth was they weren'tnecessarily smarter or more
capable.
They just weren't stuck in thecycle of overthinking and second

(02:54):
guessing.
They simply moved forwardconfidently.
This moment of realizationbecame the cornerstone of the
powerful presence I now teachwomen to build.
But the journey and bridging myown confidence gap wasn't
overnight.
It required intentional work,honest self-reflection and
practical strategies that I'msharing with you today.
Now, before we can fixsomething, we have to understand

(03:18):
it.
So let's look into a fewreasons why women, despite being
incredibly capable, often doubtthemselves and hold themselves
back.
Number one the perfectionismtrap.
This is something I fall into.
Research shows that many womenfeel they must meet 100% of job
criteria or qualificationsbefore applying or speaking up,

(03:40):
whereas men they often applyconfidently at 60%.
Whereas men, they often applyconfidently at 60%.
We believe we must be perfect,otherwise we remain silent.
I did a lot of research on thistopic before coming to speak on
it and all of it made totalsense and sounds like stuff I
had done early on.
So I feel more confidenttalking and sharing about it now

(04:00):
.
Number two is societalconditioning.
From a young age, many of ushave been subtly taught to be
agreeable, humble, polite, nottoo loud, not too ambitious.
You know being the perfect girl.
While humility and kindness arevirtues, they shouldn't come at
the expense of your own voiceor your own ambition.

(04:22):
And number three this is theone I hear all the time from
women.
I've worked with fear ofjudgment.
Women, particularly inmale-dominated industries, often
fear being judged harshly orlabeled negatively for showing
assertiveness or ambition.
This fear can prevent us fromstepping up, even when we're

(04:42):
completely capable.
Recognize these.
You're not alone and the goodnews is, each one is something
we can actively work onovercoming.
So now let's dive intostrategies to overcome this
confidence gap.
So I promised practical tips tohelp you bridge your confidence
gap, and here they are.
Number one reframe your innerdialogue.

(05:05):
We spend so much time in ourown heads, so we need to learn
to shift the dialogue andremember that the words we say
to ourself truly matter.
Change that inner narrativefrom I can't to I'll try, and
from what if I fail I fail towhat if this is exactly the
opportunity I've been waitingfor.

(05:26):
They really are simple fixesand things we need to remember
to do in our own heads where welive.
So here's a personal examplefrom me Whenever my inner critic
starts whispering doubts, Ichallenge it directly and I've
done this publicly sometimes,where I challenge myself to do
things that I don't think willwork and then I've proved that

(05:46):
they do and I was wrong.
So I go from that whole.
I'm not qualified enough toforce myself to pause and
literally say things like I'mexactly where I need to be or
where I should be.
I know it sounds simple, butsaying it out loud helps drown
that negative inner voice.
Now, number two lean intodiscomfort intentionally.

(06:07):
This is again something I do alot, y'all.
Confidence grows faster inuncomfortable situations.
Challenge yourself to speak upin the next meeting.
Post that video online orvolunteer to present your ideas
first.
Post that video online orvolunteer to present your ideas
first.
Lean into your discomfortintentionally and realize it's a
gateway, not a barrier.

(06:29):
When I first started creatingvideos and reels, I was
terrified.
My first YouTube video,ridiculously scared, and I was
thinking what if no one watched?
Or what if they thought Ilooked silly?
Guess what happened Nothing.
Some people absolutely loved it.
Most really didn't care.
No one criticized or attackedme, and the more I did it, the

(06:51):
easier it became.
The growth came because Ileaned into that discomfort and
I know you can too, and I saythis all the time.
Just record yourself, no onehas to see it.
Practice, practice, practiceNow.
Number three celebrate every win, big or small.
Every small act of couragematters and each one is a

(07:16):
building block.
Learn to pause and celebrateevery win, even tiny little
moments, like speaking up duringa meeting or finally posting a
confident selfie.
These little celebrationsrewire your brain to associate
confidence with positiveoutcomes.
It becomes addictive,motivating you to repeat that
courageous behavior over andover again.
Number four build yourconfidence squad.
I talk about this oftennetworking and community

(07:37):
building and finding your tribe.
This is huge.
You can never underestimate thepower of surrounding yourself
with people who uplift you,challenge you and genuinely want
to see you succeed.
Find those mentors,accountability partners or join
groups specifically focused onuplifting ambitious women.
Trust me, I have my groups andI don't know where I would be

(07:59):
without them.
So remember that confidencegrows stronger when we see it
reflected in the eyes of thosewho truly believe in us.
You know what they say.
You are who you surroundyourself with, so make sure you
surround yourself with the rightpeople.
I want to encourage you today,right here, right now, to stop
holding yourself back.

(08:20):
You have talent.
You have skills and brilliancethat this world needs.
You have unique stories,insights and perspectives that
must be shared.
Confidence isn't a personalitytrait.
It's a skill you build, amuscle you strengthen and a
bridge you can cross over andover again until it becomes

(08:41):
second nature.
I think that's why I loverunning so much.
I have this ingrained in me tojust show up day after day, even
when it's not the best, andthat plays so much into this.
Practice makes perfect and itbecomes a habit.
I want you to take oneintentional action today to
bridge your confidence gap.
Post something authentic online, speak up about your idea in

(09:05):
your next meeting, or reach outto someone you've been meaning
to connect with but have heldback.
Then DM me or tag me in yoursocial media stories.
I want to celebrate these bravemoments alongside you.
So for my closing thoughts,listen up y'all.
The confidence gap is real, butit's not permanent.
Remember, confidence isn'tsomething you're born with

(09:26):
necessarily, but it is somethingthat you can build.
It's a hero's journey, andevery single step you take
forward is bringing you closerto that confidence, that
powerful presence you're meantto have.
Thank you so much for tuning into Living the Whole Picture.
If this episode resonated withyou, I'd love for you to
subscribe, leave me a review andshare it with another

(09:47):
high-achieving woman who needsto hear this message.
Or, better yet, share it andtag me on social media.
Visit my website, jamapantel.
com, for more resources, updatesand ways we can work together.
Be sure to subscribe whileyou're on the website so you
never miss anything.
You've worked hard to get whereyou are Now.
It's time to show upconfidently and own your
presence.

(10:07):
Until next time, keep showingup and living the whole picture.