Helpful tips and personal stories. Exploring career challenges and successes when you’re feeling socially anxious, shy and not good enough. You are not alone.
At 7 years old, I felt so terrified when doing a ‘weather forecast’ at school, I nervously farted in front of my class. At 26, I froze during a 3-minute presentation whilst on a ‘Projecting Professional Confidence’ workshop; feeling unable to finish I ran back to my seat and held back tears as my body […]
You know how it is when you get talking to someone and that quiet excitement bubbles up inside because they feel so aligned with where you are and it’s almost like the universe has sent them your way? Well, I was lucky enough to have one of those awesome connections yesterday. It’s funny to think […]
Most of the time I feel like I’m running late for my own life; while everyone else seems to be on time for theirs or maybe even ahead of schedule. Sometimes, I wish I lived in outer space. In space, time doesn’t matter like it does here on earth. I lay in bed, unable to […]
To mark the start of Mental Health Awareness Week, a panel discussion bringing together professionals from the field of health and wellbeing in Cornwall was held at The Museum of Cornish Life in Helston as part of the “I was, I am, I will be” exhibition that Quiet Connections developed in collaboration with the museum, […]
Communication Skills for Career Success Ask an employer from any sector what they look for in new recruits and it’s not long before that broadly defined powerhouse of a soft skill – communication – springs to mind. Not surprising, really. Effective communication means a potential hire has the interpersonal and persuasion skills to explain ideas […]
My mantra through school and university life was ‘avoid all eye contact with the teacher and they likely won’t pick on you to answer a question’. It wasn’t that I was a bad student, in fact I was always among the ones topping the class. It’s just that my confidence just seemed to end beyond […]
Rattle the stars Hundreds and hundreds of books overflowing from my bookcases show that I’ve always been a big reader. You can usually find me in the middle of reading something. I find it to be incredibly safe and familiar with my head in a book. The fact that I can escape to other worlds, […]
Did you know there are three aspects of happiness? In order to feel truly happy, we have to fulfil each of these areas: Pleasure, Engagement and Meaning. Let’s briefly explore why each of these components are important to your happiness; what activities might look like in each area; and the kind of things that could […]
Breathing. Pfft!! How could breathing possibly help with anxiety? I used to feel so annoyed that anyone would even suggest the idea of using breathing techniques. “This isn’t something I have any control over!” I’d think with a roll of my eyes, “Don’t people know how paralysing the fear is for me?” It’s going to take […]
Talking in front of large groups or individuals can be tough for anybody living with social anxiety. I prefer to be around a friend or somebody I’m familiar with when speaking to one or several new people (and a bit of Dutch courage might help me too!). However, in the workplace you will not always […]
Last week, I spoke at Cornwall Business Fair alongside Sally Heard, CEO from Cornwall School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE), and Ian Curnow from Konnect Cornwall. I opened up about the hidden challenges of social entrepreneurship: feeling like you’re not good enough and don’t belong here. The imposter experience is something I think the majority of us have […]
Talking about our self-doubt and our anxieties in social situations is still taboo. We tend to think we should be able to do certain things, like talk to strangers and speak up, just because other people seem to manage with ease. It can feel like we’re the only person struggling. Then there’s the stigma we experience when […]