My Meeting with The White Tigress: 3 Lessons of Confidence & Kindness

Three reasons to read this article

1. Embrace Self-Respect: Understand that your worth is just as valid as anyone else's, and don’t hesitate to reach out to those who inspire you.
2. Let Go of Fear: Shift your mindset from worrying about how others perceive you to focusing on being proud of your own actions and choices.
3. Cultivate Authentic Kindness: Practise being genuinely kind while staying true to yourself, as this creates deeper connections and enhances your presence in any room.

Short on time? I’ve got you!

Let me read you the article instead! ??

Introduction

I’m currently in Dubai, and met with an incredibly intelligent, successful and oh-so kind woman.

About 3 weeks prior, I had mustered up every ounce of courage and reached out to her on Linkedin, as a complete stranger, hoping to connect with her in person while here.

OMG! She responded! And said yes to a meeting!

We met at the Ritz Hotel Lobby bar in the financial district. I arrived a bit early, sat near a window and enjoyed the people-watching.

And then, she walked in.

We’ll call her “The White Tigress” who glided in gracefully - a blond bombshell who looked like she had just stepped off the runway wearing a stunning white satin A-line dress with a gold-beaded halter neck, white blazer off shoulders and Gucci-like sunglasses.

(Side note - A WHITE OUTFIT that had NO MAKEUP MARKS! How this is possible is beyond me).

Alright here we go - an important decision needs to be made.

Handshake? Or hug?

I’m a hugger, and for years I would just… well, hug, until an uncomfortable experience I had earlier this year. I walked into a meeting and went in for a hug to the lady I was meeting - to which she put out her hand to stop me and said “I value my personal space”.

The people-pleaser inside of me was literally speed dialing my therapist.

Regardless - lesson learnt.

So now I do my best to restrain myself and wait for a “it’s ok to hug sign”.

BUT THE WHITE TIGRESS HUGGED FIRST!

Who is this rare creature? Intelligent, kind and a hugger?

But then, it got stranger.

As we dove down conversational rabbit holes, I shared that I’m finally at a point in my life where I don’t allow the fear of what people think of me to stop me achieving my dreams.

I’m me - and of course I do hope you like me! But I’ll be ok if you don’t.

And here’s where I felt like I had literally met the most rare human on earth:

“I’ve never worried about what people think of me - ever”.

Um, exsqueeze me? Baking powder?

Who are you and what supplements do you take?

And yes, she was serious.

I walked away from that meeting feeling like I had a session with the world’s most incredible motivational coach. My cupeth runneth over - more revved up to pursue my goals than ever.

So I thought I’d share three realisations and actions that I promised myself that I would do moving forward, inspired by the healthy chutzpah of The White Tigress.

1. Approach people who inspire you, no matter what.

Imagine walking into a room of confident, powerful, accomplished, wealthy, [enter your word here] people. What are you thinking? Do you immediately say to yourself “I don’t belong here”? Or are you gosh darn excited at the opportunity to connect and learn from them??

Here’s the big difference between the two: self-respect. Self-respect is that mindset boost that reminds you - “sure, these people are pretty special, but I’m special too”.

Action: If someone impresses you or you feel a pull to connect, reach out – even if you think it’s a long shot. Because don’t forget -? you’re pretty impressive too.

2. Let go of the fear of rejection.

I counted how many people I reached out to for this trip to Dubai:

21, and 19 responded!

Imagine if I would have said to myself “No one is going to respond anyways, what’s the point?’.

I would have been sitting in this cafe, alone, holding back my tears praying for someone to walk in and say “you look like you’re new here! How can I help?

The benefit of shifting from “Will they like me?” to “Am I proud of me?” brings peace and real confidence.

Action: Count the wins by the risks you take, not the number of responses you get.

3. Embrace kindness as a bada$$ power move.

When we’re concerned about what people think of us we either have to show that ‘we know our $hit’ (protecting the needs of the high-achiever in us) or be everyone’s best friend (protecting the needs of the people pleaser inside of us). But The White Tigress radiated warmth and kindness while simultaneously exuding pride and confidence —a rare combination that is not only refreshing – it’s effective. It disarms, creates connection, and instantly elevates the energy in any room and makes everyone feel seen.?

Action: Kindness without authenticity is superficial charm - one could say even ‘performative kindness’. Stay true to yourself - and kindness will just naturally happen.

Concluding Thoughts

Each encounter in life holds lessons, some are amazing, while others are debilitating. But then there are those rare encounters that feel like they hand you a whole new playbook for life.

So here’s to embracing every opportunity, leading with self-respect, and staying true to who you are—no matter the audience.

DrK x

???? Hi there! I'm Katherine.

I challenge leaders to take bigger risks by letting go of the imaginary judgement and criticism that holds them back. My talks focus on leading more authentically and wearing our masks a little less, so we can take those scary steps that truly propel our careers and businesses forward—without worrying about looking ‘stupid’ if we fail or mess up.

Want to want my new video and learn more? Head over here!

If this sounds like a topic you might like to explore for your future events—so your audience can drop their acts and make a bigger impact within their professional careers and organisations—I’d love to hear from you. (I’d also love to hear from Chris Hemsworth, but that’s a story for another day).

?? Website - www.drkatherine.com

?? Email - [email protected]