Are you an advocate?

“Would you like me to advocate for you?” he asked quietly. His request was sincere and he knew that saying “yes” went against every fiber of my being. My response was delayed. I paused for a long while before answering him.

At that moment I was torn.

People around me will tell you that even though I am 4’10,” and sound like I am five years old, I am fiercely independent. I have been caught climbing supermarket shelves to get items on the top shelf rather than asking for help. I Google how-to videos before seeking counsel.

I have always believed there isn’t a problem I couldn’t solve, or an answer I couldn't find, because someone will always know. This ridiculous confidence means I have (incorrectly) always thought I could do (almost) anything — so agreeing to his help felt weak. I didn’t want to rely on him (or anyone, maybe because I am the oldest child LOL), and despised feeling vulnerable (even though secretly I knew his advocacy and introductions would accelerate my career).

Argh — I hated that feeling. And yet, he was right, I needed him to advocate for me even though I didn’t want it. I eventually agreed to his kind offer, and as a result, he saved me months of research, and made specific introductions in his network that changed the conversations I had with his peers, who then hired me as a speaker and executive strategist in his industry — I am so grateful.

Are you like that? Don’t want help. Want to do it all yourself? Want to prove you can do it to yourself and the world? I see you. But there is a better way.

Imagine the business benefits of advocacy: a more productive, and happier workplace where we feel supported doing meaningful work and are taking the time to promote the work of others we admire; standing up for people who don’t feel they have a voice; allowing people new opportunities to shine in leading projects, job rotations and as committee volunteers. It's not complicated but it does require intentional attention. And the time you spend as a leader carving out space for that intentional attention will pay off in dividends.

The Power of Advocacy — Women Leaders

You have heard me share that Luxury Leadership is about being the BEST leader. It is about how people EXPERIENCE YOU. Luxury leadership is about delivering exceptional experiences to create advocates. Luxury leadership is about mind share — and ultimately market share. We all need advocates. We all need to advocate for others. We all need to advocate for ourselves.

We are focused on women in this edition because it is?International Women’s Day?on Friday, March 8.

Most of the women who took our?Luxury Mindset Research Survey?— 75% — are in leadership positions at work. 42% of women who aren’t in leadership positions are taking steps to become one. So what did we learn from their responses?

Advocacy: Mentorship and Confidence

When it comes to advocating for others, mentorship was at the top of the list of not only influencing factors in their own leadership journey, but in the importance of mentoring other women along their own path.?Of the respondents who reported being mentored by another woman, a resounding 73% reported that they were currently mentoring other women.

Professional women all benefit from pursuing mentorship across gender, experience, culture and age to accelerate their career and professional development. Despite this, you can be sure that there are many women who would benefit from having an advocate in their corner, but they may not be comfortable seeking mentorship in their organization and hope if they do a good job you will notice their work and promote them — something that we all know to be true is that doesn’t always happen!

We all have a responsibility to help nurture and grow the women around us, to expand our networks, to advocate for each other, and to constantly promote and endorse the work of women who are doing world-changing work.

How? By modeling the confidence in advocating for ourselves.?Our commitment to our career, community and those we care for will inspire others to do the same.

For the working women in our lives, it can be hard to make time for luxury and even harder to have a luxury leadership mindset when running from one meeting and conference call to another, attempting to clear inboxes, develop teams, satisfy stakeholders AND juggle the multiple priorities of personal and professional relationships and health.

So how does a luxury mindset come into play here? Well, 60% of our respondents agreed that confidence is the most essential quality for executive presence.

Women leaders overwhelmingly see luxury as a reward for hard work —?when we put the work into developing a luxury leadership mindset, we get the reward of the confidence to advocate for ourselves and promote our own contributions.

Sometimes we need a little help — I get that. When that's the case, the best way to advocate for yourself is often to invest in an executive coach who can create a customized development plan tailored to accelerate your career and increase your confidence and executive presence. I am your executive advocate — I know how to do this. If you're interested in learning more about that, send me a note.?

Like this content? Did you know that provided specific tips for advocating for others, for yourself, and how to create client advocates in my newsletter? Be the first to read Notes from Neen, my bi-weekly newsletter, where I share content like that, as well as practical recommendations and more bonus content! Sign up here.

?