134. The Real Reason Leaders Struggle Isn't Confidence

For years, I thought my work was about confidence.I built programs around it. I coached women through it. I spoke on stages about it. And over and over again, I found myself returning to the same question:Why do so many brilliant, accomplished women still struggle to believe they're enough?But during my time in Goldman Sachs' Black Women in Business program, something unexpected happened.As I was pushed to get clearer about my business, my differentiation, and the problem I was actually solving, I began looking back across six years of coaching hundreds of leaders, facilitating workshops, and listening to countless stories.And I realized something profound:Confidence was never the throughline.Decision-making was.Again and again, I saw the same patterns emerge. Leaders hesitating. Waiting for more certainty. Seeking more consensus. Delaying action. Revisiting decisions that had already been made. Not because they lacked capability, but because they didn't fully trust themselves.In this deeply personal episode, I share the journey that led to the creation of the Decision Velocity Index™ (DVI) and the surprising insight that changed how I think about leadership, confidence, and growth.Because what if confidence isn't the thing we're actually after?What if confidence is simply the byproduct of trusting ourselves enough to make a decision and act?In this episode, we'll explore:The unexpected insight that emerged during Goldman Sachs' Black Women in Business programWhy decision-making - not confidence - may be the hidden challenge for many leadersThe relationship between self-trust, action, and leadership effectivenessHow hesitation quietly impacts our lives, careers, and organizationsWhy your next level of confidence may be hiding inside a decision you've been avoidingThis episode marks the beginning of a new conversation - one that I believe has the power to fundamentally change how we think about leadership.Because confidence isn't something you wait to feel.It's what happens when you trust yourself enough to move.***********If this conversation resonates, and you're curious about how these patterns might be showing up in your own leadership or organization, we'd love to hear from you. The Decision Velocity Index™ was built to help uncover the hidden decision-making patterns that influence how we lead, act, and execute under pressure. This is just the beginning of the conversation.Learn more here https://decision-velocity-index.lovable.appand if you want to bring the DVI to your team, send us an email at [email protected]