Today we chat with confidence guru and health coach, Sarah Pyland on the topic of self-confidence. I would be lying if I said there weren’t tears shed in this interview as this woman truly touches our hearts! If you have ever struggled with low self-confidence then PLEASE listen closely as we discuss:
- What are limiting beliefs and who has them?
- Is it possible to reframe our thoughts?
- How does self-confidence affect our work as nannies?
Introducing The Happy Camper Coach!
Sarah is a certified health coach. She runs her own business called Happy Camper Coaching. She helps women lose weight without “dieting” and feel more confident in their bodies.
So much of the confidence we have in our businesses, relationships, and friendships stems from healthy self-confidence. So that’s really the goal for all of us, right? Learning to take care of ourselves; telling ourselves, ‘Hey, I’m important enough to prioritize myself. I deserve to take care of myself.’
So many of us are trying to learn fundamental beliefs like: Self care isn’t a luxury. Our health is a necessity.
Confidence as a Nanny
So, getting to the point!
Building healthy self-confidence will make us:
- Set boundaries for ourselves
- Know our worth
- Get PAID for all that we do for our families- guilt-free!
Be Mindful of Your Beliefs
What does this mean? Well, like Sarah ever so elegantly explains, we ALL have limiting beliefs that we learn as children. Not to play the blame game on parents or on anyone else but it’s something we need to acknowledge. Every. Single. Person. has been taught some sort of limiting beliefs.
Here are some examples concerning employment:
- It’s not possible to have a job I love.
- Work is work and it’s not going to be fun.
- Running my own business is “not a real job.”
- I’m not good enough. (My personal favorite)
Yep, that last one stings. Maybe we don’t even realize we feel this way, but so much of what we believe translates to how we feel which reinforces what we believe. Wait, is that some sort of cycle?
Feelings=Beliefs=Feelings=Beliefs=Feelings… Que the spiraling.
“Our thoughts affect us more than reality. We kinda create our own reality with our thoughts.” – Sarah
Spirals are for Staircases!
What will limiting beliefs do? They will breed negative self-doubt. They will cause you to question yourself.
If you are a nanny trying to start your own career and you hear well-meaning loved ones say (in their most judgmental ‘non-judgmental tone’),
“You want to be a nanny? Can you actually make enough money that way?”
How does that make you feel? Maybe your immediate thought is to question yourself. Then you start to THINK you’re not going to be good enough. Or maybe you just feel that you’re not being taken seriously and supported. Do you even deserve support?
That’s rhetorical because YES, YOU DESERVE SUPPORT <3 Rainey
I love how Sarah put this into perspective when she remarks, “There will always be people who do not understand what we are doing and that’s okay. Keep it in mind so that when (not if) it happens, you can be prepared.
Instead of feeling frustrated or irritated, reset your mind to think positive. Something like: ‘This person probably said something to me because they care about me. They want what’s best for me but that doesn’t necessarily mean what they are saying is TRUE.’”
This can help you to battle the next feeling which is doubt. Is having my own nanny business too risky? Will I be good enough? Am I worth what I am asking?
*Mic Tap*…”Is this thing on?”
Add another level of insecurity and that is: Public platforms.
Building your own business means putting yourself out there. For me, this is a VERY relatable anxiety.
Sometimes I can’t tell if anyone is actually seeing me, hearing me, liking me. Or a week goes by and no one is buying my products so it’s easy to translate silence into failure. It feels demoralizing!
Oh, how we get in our own heads, am I right?
Let’s Play a Game!
Something we all want is TANGIBLE EVIDENCE.
And guess what? We even look for evidence subconsciously, especially when we are looking to back up a belief. So, think about the limiting beliefs we talked about earlier and the evidence that might back up those beliefs.
- It’s not possible to have a job I love.
- Work is work and it’s not going to be fun.
- Running my own business is “not a real job.”
- I’m not good enough.
As a generalization, maybe some negative evidence that backs up these beliefs could be, “My family doesn’t think this is going to work.” Or, “Oh I actually know someone who tried nannying and it didn’t work out for them.” Or, “I’m really disorganized so maybe running my own business is impossible.”
Sarah, bless her heart, helps us see that there is something ELSE we can do instead!
Put That Thing Down, Flip It and Reverse It
Look for positive evidence that we can use to refute the limiting beliefs. How about, “LOTS of people are successful and happy nannies!” Or, “I genuinely LOVE being a nanny.” And that can be enough as long as you believe that you deserve happiness!
Sarah’s Happy Camper Coaching
Sarah’s Monday morning podcast is called, Confidence & Cocktails. Guys, this has been the perfect start to my week. It’s the feel-good pep talk we ALL need to refute our limiting beliefs and start believing that we deserve happiness!
And while I’m at it, if you are a human who would like to embrace self care, invest in yourself, take care of your body, and ooze confidence, sign up for the Confidence Camp.
Notice Your Thoughts
Like we mentioned before, our thoughts and what we believe (DESPITE REALITY) have a direct affect on our happiness and by default, our confidence and energy. I love how Sarah says, “Our thoughts affect us more than reality. We kinda create our own reality with our thoughts.”
“It’s hard to show up on social media. It’s hard to market ourselves; market our services. It’s hard to apply for jobs when we don’t feel good about ourselves when we feel uncomfortable and kind of trapped in this body that we don’t want to be in.” -Sarah
I Believe in a Thing Called YOU
So, nannies, future nannies, aspiring nannies, are you feeling doubt and negativity? Maybe you’ve applied to several families and you haven’t heard anything back.
Before you start finding negative evidence to solidify the belief that this isn’t going to work out, notice your thoughts, get a grip, and find the positive evidence to bring you back to confidence.
It’s empowering to decide how to feel!
Boy, it takes work, though! Now give yourself a great big hug for all that amazing work you just did!
If you decide that there are some ways you can step up your game but you need some ideas and some support, I’M YA GIRL! Seriously, I am passionate about mentoring all you lovelies out there and would love to help you feel more confident in your career.
There are so many things you can add to your nanny skillset. I can give you tons of tools that will make you stand out and earn the big bucks!
Or, if you’re currently nannying and you are just kinda feeling like a punching bag lately (Mom bosses tacking on more work without compensation, complaining about your rates or demanding more out of you than you can realistically give…)
My mentoring program can help you get a grip on your boundaries. You are worth it!
Repeat after me: I deserve help. I am worth happiness!
