The Freedom of Choice: Breaking Beauty Conventions and Societal Standards with Sheila Buswellll

Have you found yourself privately saying, “I don’t get it, I don’t have imposter syndrome, and can’t relate to people who say they have.” Our next guest, Sheila Buswell, can in fact relate to you if you’re a human who connects with that statement. At least she could, until she couldn’t… Once the CEO and Co-Founder of Buswell Biomedical, and veteran of the US Army, got perspective on where the feeling of “not enough” showed up in a specific area of her purview, everything changed. Today, Sheila’s an author, sharing her personal experiences with imposter syndrome alongside a diverse group of other accomplished humans who struggled with self-doubt in her book, Is This Seat For Me? Overcoming Imposter Syndrome in Everyday Life and Business. In this episode, we dive deeper into how you can be dope and still doubt in a way that can make you play small when you’re here for big impact.

Time Stamps:

00:00 In-depth conversation about imposter syndrome

04:40 How Imposter syndrome arises with new challenges

08:52 Biases at work

13:30 The importance of deciding to embrace or fix flaws

14:27 Not every woman want’s to hold your baby

20:07 Space for freedom of choice.

21:57 Bucking the system

25:53 Understanding diverse communication styles, including your own

29:49 Sharing is caring and how to start small

More about Sheila Buswell

After losing her scholarship to college, Sheila enrolled in the US Army where she cross trained as a Generator Mechanic. After receiving a medical discharge in 2001, Sheila transitioned back into civilian life. Committed to not ending up in a minimum wage job flipping burgers, Sheila enrolled in the Missouri University of Science and Technology so she could build a career as an engineer. 

For years, Sheila both had success in her career and also endured a tremendous amount of sexism. She left her job in 2019 to found Buswell Biomedical, a company based off the device she invented which is controlled by Machine Learning.

Follow Sheila Buswell:

www.isthisseatforme.com 

Sheila’s Book: Is This Seat for Me? Overcoming Imposter Syndrome in Everyday Life and Business

Personal Note from Naketa:

The conversation doesn't stop here, come chat with me over on @naketarenthigpen Substack.

I take you deeper with unfiltered reflections, the behind-the-scenes thought process, and the real-world application of everything we unpacked here.

Pull up a chair, pour a cup (or glass, no judgement here) and let's talk work, life, love, growth, (and) how to sustain it without losing your mogul-in-the-making mind.

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