Check if any of these apply to you:
If you’ve checked even one, it’s a sign you’re giving your power away. And you’re not alone.
The question is: Why are so many women reluctant to say what we think, feel, or need?
“Research shows that suppression activates the amygdala in your brain, where your body’s fight of flight response resides. Suppression will make you more anxious in the long run and will have harmful effects on your health.” ~~Wall Street Journal
Years ago, I noticed a puzzling phenomenon. It’s far more prevalent today. I call it the Secret Shame of Successful Women.
Bright, sophisticated professionals, making ample incomes, who have little (if anything) in the bank to show for it.
These women look like the epitome of success—whip smart, business savvy, high earners—yet they can’t seem to manage their money.
They’re either too ashamed to reach out for help (I should be able to do this) or stubbornly resist taking action when they do (I have no time).
At first it didn’t make sense. You’d think they’d know better, right?
She sat across the table, looking like the savvy businesswoman she was.
As we chatted over kale salads, she told me how her company, not yet two years old, was growing exponentially.
Then she lowered her voice and leaned in close. “There’s something I need to talk about. I’ve never shared this with anyone.”
“What is it?” I asked, also leaning forward. I could tell this was difficult for her.
“I’m afraid of success. I can already see little ways I’m holding myself back.”
When I asked what scared her, she replied, “I’m afraid people won’t like me. I’m afraid people will want more of me than I can give them. I’m scared it will all be too much.”
“You’re not afraid of success,” I responded. “You’re afraid of power. There’s a distinct difference.”
This conversation reveals a critical distinction that more women need to understand. Success is the outcome we desire to achieve. Power is what it takes to create this outcome.
Have you ever felt stuck in a loop—replaying the same frustrations, reliving the same disappointments, and wondering why nothing seems to change? Here’s the truth: the way you see the world is shaping your experience of it.
But what if you could change how you see it?
A simple lesson from A Course in Miracles (ACIM) offers a powerful key to transforming your reality:
“There is another way of looking at the world.”
This isn’t just a nice idea—it’s a radical call to reframe the way you interpret your experiences. Every challenge, every frustration, every unsettling moment is an invitation to pause and ask yourself:
How can I see this differently?
This one shift can rewire your brain, reshape your beliefs, and unlock what feels like miracles in your life. And while it’s simple in theory, changing your perspective takes practice. Over the years, I’ve discovered three powerful techniques that make this shift easier and more effective—each rooted in science, psychology, and spiritual wisdom.
There’s a story about an experienced mountain climber who trips, falls, and is clinging precariously to the side of a ledge.
“Help me, God,” she cries.
Suddenly she hears a voice.
“I’ll help you Sadie, but first you must do one thing,”
“I’ll do anything,” she says.
And the voice replies, “You gotta’ let go of the ledge.”
I dream of the day when every woman knows, deep down, that she has the capacity to create wealth and the confidence to actually do it.
I suspect for some of you, however, the mere mention of the “W” word feels wrong, bad, like ‘how can I be rich when so many are poor?’
But consider the words of Abraham Lincoln: “If you want to help a poor person, do not be one.”
Besides, creating wealth is about far more than amassing riches. It’s about waking up to the truth of who you are and the power you have, the enormous power, to not only create wealth but to use it as a tool to help others.
All my life, I’ve been a self-improvement junkie. Show me a seminar touting personal growth and it was like throwing raw meat to a ravenous lion. I’d hungrily pounce on it.
But then, in 2020 when life went into lockdown, removing a myriad of distractions, I noticed something disturbing—how brutally critical I am of me. This wasn’t a new insight, of course, but I began to see how awful it felt.
So, I made a conscious decision. Rather than pushing myself to improve, I decided to practice Radical Self-Acceptance, loving myself, warts and all…especially the warts.
Don’t get me wrong. I still aspire to be better. But I’m finding a remarkable sense of freedom and well-being as I learn to fully embrace my shortcomings and my strengths, my achievements and my failures, without fear or false humility, without shame or recrimination.
One thing I know for sure—Your financial foundation is only as strong as your personal integrity.
The word integrity comes from a Latin root, meaning wholeness or entirety. Integrity demands your words and deeds consistently reflect your deepest truths.
Or, as A Course in Miracles puts it, “There is nothing you say that contradicts what you think or do.”
Whenever you’re settling for less than you truly desire, working at a job you hate, making excuses, rationalizing, spending money you don’t have, not honoring your most cherished values and authentic truths, you’re out of integrity, giving away your power and sabotaging your success.
I spent most of my adult life in a financial fog as opaque as pea soup…and frustrating as hell. If you can relate, you’re certainly not alone.
Millions of women today are stuck in a financial fog so thick and threatening, they can’t find their way to wealth and well-being. And the consequences can be devastating…on our self-esteem as well as our future security.
The way out of this miasma is not by learning more financial facts, but by first understanding then lifting the fog.
This fog is made up of a matrix of issues–suppressed emotions, limiting beliefs, childhood wounds stemming from cultural conditioning, parental messages, unhealed trauma and hidden shame.
