Is your Inner Critic telling you you're not ready…?

Let me ask you something that might sound a little cheeky…

What advice have you already given someone else this week?

Chances are, it was thoughtful, practical and really helpful.

You’ve probably told a colleague not to undersell themselves in their review. You’ve helped your team member reframe a ‘mistake’ as a learning moment. You’ve reminded someone that confidence isn’t about being perfect—it’s about trusting yourself in motion.

So… what about you?

Because I know what tends to happen during mid-year reviews for so many brilliant, capable women in HR:

• You talk about what your team achieved, but barely mention your role in making it happen.

• You downplay a huge project win because “it was a group effort”.

• You see feedback as a sign you should’ve done better, not as a sign you’re learning.

• You sit quietly in the meeting, hoping someone else will point out your contributions.

This is what an Inner Critic often looks like in action. And it thrives in performance conversations like these.

You see, we’ve absorbed the idea that being humble, quiet and agreeable will earn us respect. But here’s the paradox: your impact only counts when people know it happened.

🧠 So what if, just this once, you gave yourself the advice you’d give your team?

✨ Talk about what you made possible—not in a showy way, but in a factual way.

✨ Remind yourself that your success doesn’t have to be perfect to be valid.

✨ Accept positive feedback. Full stop. No “but it was nothing” needed.

Because if you're constantly helping others shine while dimming your own light… that’s not modesty. That’s self-erasure. And your Inner Critic is winning.

Because your career deserves better than that.

Try This This Week

📌 Reframe your achievements: Instead of saying “I was lucky to be involved,” say “I played a key role in delivering X, which led to Y.”

📌 Practise accepting praise: When someone compliments your work, try saying “Thank you—I’m proud of that project too.”

📌 Write a mid-year brag file: One page. Bullet points. Facts only. What have YOU made possible this year?

Final thought...

You are not underqualified. You are not ‘just lucky.’ You are not an impostor.

You’re a capable, strategic woman in HR, and it’s time your reviews reflected that.