In this episode of "The Traveling Introvert," host Janice Chaka explores the reasons why introverts often delay investing in themselves professionally and the potential consequences that arise from this hesitation. Janice discusses how many introverts struggle with self-confidence, fear of judgment, and a tendency to prioritize the needs of others over their own growth and development. This selfless mindset often leads to delayed investments in personal and professional growth, which can result in missed career opportunities, stagnation, and reduced job satisfaction. Janice emphasizes the importance of consistently investing in oneself and offers strategies for overcoming barriers and prioritizing self-care. She also addresses common reasons people back out of investing in themselves, such as self-doubt and imposter syndrome, and encourages listeners to do the necessary inner work to overcome these challenges.

🔑 Key Takeaways:

- Overthinking and fear of judgment can lead to paralysis and delays in investing in oneself.

- Waiting until a crisis occurs can lead to missed career opportunities and uncertainty about financial stability.

- Prioritizing personal and professional growth, setting aside time for self-care, and seeking mentorship are crucial steps for success.

Hello, and welcome to the traveling Introvert. Today I want to talk

about why people delay in

investing professionally in themselves as well as there's potential

consequences. So one of the things that happens a lot is I'll

get people reach out to me, they're followed by work, they know who

I am, we have a little chat and then they kind of

back out. And I get various reasons. But the key thing is here

are a few of the reasons that stay true with everyone no matter what it

is they're saying. There is

sometimes some self doubt and impostor syndrome in

there because they might struggle with feeling unworthy

or inadequate. And so they don't deserve to go

ahead and put sort

of stock into bettering themselves professionally. They might feel it's a

them problem, but they don't necessarily want to do the inner work

to fix it. And this can hinder their confidence to invest in

themselves and pursue professional growth opportunities. They

might think that the might be judged or

criticized. The fear of being evaluated

or perceived negatively can hold them back. There's so many times that I've heard people

say well, I can't have this as a line item for my boss. I can't

have impostor syndrome coaching as a line item to give to my boss. I can't

have introvert coaching as a line item to my boss. It has to be

covered and masked as leadership coaching

or professional growth or insert thing here to be more

palatable for the culture that the are working

in. The other thing can be overthinking and analysis

paralysis, sort of deeply analyzing

situations and options can lead to

overthinking and then not making an actual

decision. The overthinking can cause delays

in investing in themselves. So many people this is so common.

People won't invest in themselves until it's too

late, when they've already been let go, when they already

need to look for a new job. Instead of just interviewing all

the time, you should always be interviewing. You don't know what's out there, you don't

know what dream job might pop up, you don't know what the rates are as

far as salary is concerned if you're not out there interviewing. You don't make good

relationships with recruiters if you're not out there interviewing. But

I notice a lot of people just kind of wait until the shoe drops and

they're like oh, I need to do this thing. Oh, but I'm not sure where

my money is coming from. So I shouldn't invest in myself. Yes, you should

always be investing in yourself all the time.

Another thing is

sort of they want to

prioritize others over themselves. Putting

themselves first as an introvert might be

hard. They prioritize the needs and well being of

others. Hence they will deal with back to back to back meetings even though it

is draining for them and normally it is at the expense of their own growth

and development. The selfless mindset can result

in delaying an investments of themselves, both professionally and

personally. And this leads to delayed

growth. I've had managers come to me saying, I know that

this person needs coaching, but they're not open to coaching because they don't

think they need it. They have an outside external source that is willing to pay

for it, that is willing to help them and guide them. But they won't do

it because of fear or because they don't think they

need it, or because they don't have enough time, because they're overwhelmed, because they are

not managing their time and their energy well enough to be able

to take that time and prioritize personal growth. And to be

fair, personal growth and professional growth should be on your calendar just as much

as meetings that you have one on one with your managers once a week or

once a month. You should have that time blocked out

anyway. The more and the longer you delay in

investing in yourself, be it with in health

or in medical or professional growth or personal growth, the longer that you

delay, the bigger the missed opportunities

it could be. Missed career opportunities, it could be stagnation, reduced

job satisfaction, all of it can limit your potential for career

advancement. Acquiring new skills and reaching your goals should be something that is

just a constant presence in your life, always learning. And

it doesn't necessarily have to be direct correlation to your work. But if you are

taking an interest in yourself and you are putting yourself first

rather than others, you will make the time to watch

videos or listen to podcasts to aid your professional and

personal growth. It can only be better for

you. And one of these

things, along with the overthinking and the fear of judgment and

putting other people first, means you end up not promoting yourself

as well. You find it challenging to showcase your skills and accomplishments

because you didn't go ahead and get that help that you

needed, whether it's seeking a mentor or asking someone for

advice. So please treat yourself

like your best client. Recognize your reasons and the potential

consequences you should address and overcome those barriers

with self awareness, support and intentional action.

You can go ahead and put yourself first. Thank you for listening. This is

Janice@thecuryintrat.com helping you build your brand and get hired. Have a