Study about women's individual capacity to build confidence and self-esteem

A recent Human Resources’ study revealed five “reasons for most employee negativity” in the workplace:


1. An excessive workload.
2. Concerns about management’s ability to lead the company forward successfully.
3. Anxiety about the future, particularly long-term job, income and retirement security.
4. Lack of challenge in their work, with boredom intensifying existing frustration about workload.
5. Insufficient recognition for the level of contribution and effort provided, and concerns that pay isn’t commensurate with performance.

If someone were to conduct a “Women’s Individual Capacity-Building” study and substitute the title of the study to read:

“Five potential causes of some women’s lack of confidence and low self-esteem…”

Some of the possible reasons might be –

1. Over-reliance on others to affirm who she is and should be as an individual in her current reality instead of looking herself in the mirror every day and reminding herself that she is beautifully and wonderfully made to make a positive difference everywhere she goes.

2. Over-scheduling and over-committing herself to participate in events and activities because she has not yet learned how to gracefully say “No,” or bow out when the lever reaches “Overload.”

3. Under-utilization of her natural and acquired talents, gifts, and abilities because she’s confused “playing the societal game” with “being silent and just going along with whatever comes her way in life with the hopes that everyone will simply grow to like her.”

4. Under-representation and lack of acceptance and recognition in the environments in which she frequents because she has allowed herself to believe that being a self-advocate who has developed the savvy and know-how to effectively promote, market, and “sell” herself is really a way of showing vanity, conceit, and narcissism.

5. Over-analyzing, over-thinking, over-worrying, and being overly-anxious about things she can’t control; and underestimating her capacity and ability to help “management” lead by providing those individuals with elements of her own leadership that are developed and strong enough to move mountains if called for.

What are your thoughts about other potential reasons for such a study regarding women's capacity-building?  Please share them with us.


Celebrating Women’s History Month…building self-capacity to make things happen!

Sharon M. Biggs, M.A., is a wife, mother, and 21st Century educational leader who serves as Co-Chair & President of Lifeline Foundation, Inc.  This 24-year educator is also Founder, Editor, and Chief Writer of LifelineExtensions.blog. View Sharon's other published works at http://www.examiner.com/.

Contact Sharon directly for more information: sharonbiggs@mylifelinefoundation.org

"Children are the globe's most precious commodity."
(Terence H. Biggs, Jr. ~ 2009)

Tried and true sister-girl love that strengthens ~ message from a SAHM & her sister-girl

Photo: Copyright www.thisislondon.co.uk/wimbledon/article-2371...

There are times when our sister-girls (meaning all of the girls and women in our lives who make up parts and pieces of who we are, were, or work toward being) empower us to be great and to do great things when we didn’t believe we could.

All this before we even get a chance to ask them if we can lean on them for a short while so we can regain our strength.

That’s real tried and true sister-girl-love.

Sometimes our sister-girls help talk strength back into us at times when we feel almost numb because our “21st Century Women Makin’ It Happen” shoulders have been weighted down by the cares of the world as they relate to our families, homes, careers, school lives, and growing businesses.

It is during those times that all we sometimes have strength enough to muster up saying is: Love you, Sis...really do.

And, those simple words carry such a complex meaning in the nurturing of our sister-girl life bond.

The true sister-girls in our personal and professional lives know exactly what that complex meaning is...

It is ~

You just asked me to do something that would really help a lot of people in the long run (including me!), but my plate and head are so full I’ve had to say “no” to you.

Since I don’t like saying “no” to you I actually waited a couple of days before responding to the request, but even from a distance I could sense I was being patiently waited for by you.

Because of the level of love and respect I have for you and I know you have for me, I got the courage to respond to you and gently say, “No," I’m sorry I just can’t do that right now.

You respond in kind to me by saying something like:

"Hi Sweetie ~ If you were not my sister and did not know that I am yours, then I would understand you not being able to say “no” when you need to. But, we don’t have that situation. Our bond is about honesty. I know you’re overwhelmed right now, but I also know what a strong woman you are. Just remember I’m holding you up from a distance and believing in your regained strength…Love you, Sis…"

Let’s remember to acknowledge and celebrate the tried and true sister-girls in our lives as we also celebrate Women’s History Month…remembering to lean on our sister-girls for regained strength when we need to, just because we know we can and they'll understand!

Written by…Lisa Richardson-Hall & Sharon M. Biggs

Lisa Richardson-Hall co-founded and jointly owns and operates Eventfully Yours with her business partner and former college roommate, Devvan Dowdy.  Eventfully Yours is a New Jersey-based Event Coordination partnership. Lisa and Devvan are SAHMs (Stay-at-Home-Moms) who enjoy the flexibility built into their busy schedules as wives, mothers, and successful businesswomen.  Lisa and her husband, Rob, live in New Jersey with their two sons.  LifelineExtensions.blog is glad to welcome Lisa's writing contribution to this article and looks forward to including more of her message in future articles. 

To find out more about having Lisa & Devvan coordinate your next event contact them at:

Eventfully Yours
25 Brenner Street
Newark, New Jersey 07108
973-297-0909
Direct: 908-244-9000
Eventfullyyours1@aol.com

Sharon M. Biggs, M.A., is a wife, mother, and 21st Century educational leader who serves as Co-Chair & President of Lifeline Foundation, Inc.  This 24-year educator is also Founder, Editor, and Chief Writer of LifelineExtensions.blog. View Sharon's other published works at http://www.examiner.com/.

Contact Sharon directly for more information: sharonbiggs@mylifelinefoundation.org

"Children are the globe's most precious commodity."
(Terence H. Biggs, Jr. ~ 2009)

Pulling off our masked identities to risk revealing our true selves to the world

Photo: Copyright PhotoXpress.com

Title: Professional SAHM & SAHD

Key Accomplishments:   Provide senior leadership in the collaborative and coordinated logistics; public relations; activities; security; medical treatment;  meal preparation; facility improvements, upgrades, and maintenance; budget development and administration; scheduling; goal-setting; daily instruction, and other varied functions as the need arises for the husband/wife and children I am happily responsible for.

Stay-At-Home-Moms & Dads (SAHMs & SAHDs) have no gaps in their work experience…

LifelineExtensions.blog’s theme for March, "Celebrating Women’s History Month ~ Great Women Who Make/Made It Happen;" couldn’t have come at a better time for me, personally.

I have been reading about someone I believe to be one of the greatest women from biblical times, Esther.  For me, Esther exemplified a woman who made things happen and risked her life in doing so.

Raised by her cousin after her parents had died; Esther was adored by the king of the land, who just happened to be looking for a new queen around the same time he met her.

Esther’s cousin had given her strict orders not to reveal her true identity, background, beliefs, race, or ethnicity to anyone as a way to avoid being tortured or even killed.   

This forced her to have to pretend to always be someone else to the world, even though inside she cried out to just be herself.

Her cousin, someone else truly liked by the king, had to hide his identity, as well.   

 But, when he uncovered a deadly plan that had been made to murder the king; he knew he had to do something about it. 

So, he went to his cousin, Esther; and asked her to break the news to the king, who by now would respond to practically anything Esther told him.

In what probably seemed like a split second, Esther had to make a tough decision:

Did she take off the “mask” she'd been wearing in order to “save face” and not allow people to get to know and understand who she really was?   

Or, did she risk pulling off the mask that had been on for so long, and possibly be mocked, tortured, ostracized, or perhaps killed as a result of her action?

Esther chose the high road, which can at times be the most risk-filled road to take. 

She knew there were so many other people who were depending on her lone decision to help decide their own fate, so she bravely told the king of the plan that had been set to destroy him.

In doing so, Esther and her cousin were both promoted to even higher levels within the king’s court because of his gratitude about being loyal to the king.

But perhaps more importantly, through Esther's brave and true leadership she demonstrated to others who trusted her; that in order to rise to the level of their full potential in life they could and should expect to sometimes get out of their comfort zones, risk being unpopular, and pull off the masks they may have become comfortable wearing.

Celebrating Women’s History Month…pulling off our masked identities to reveal our true selves to the world!

Stephanie Evans
Professional SAHM

Stephanie Evans and her husband, Bill, live in New Jersey with their three daughters who are ages five, three, and one.  Stephanie has a B.S. degree in Music Education and taught Music for 11 years in the public school system.  She loves children and enjoyed being a teacher, but she loves being a SAHM even more!  Stephanie is a regular Contributing Writer for LifelineExtensions.blog.

Sharon M. Biggs, M.A., is a wife, mother, and 21st Century educational leader who serves as Co-Chair & President of Lifeline Foundation, Inc.  This 23-year educator is also Founder, Editor, and Chief Writer of LifelineExtensions.blog. 

View Sharon's other published works at http://www.examiner.com/.

Contact Sharon directly for more information: sharonbiggs@mylifelinefoundation.org

"Children are the globe's most precious commodity."
(Terence H. Biggs, Jr. ~ 2009)

Setting goals and sticking to them ~ A Teen Girl's Perspective

"It's not what you do once in a while, it's what you do day in and day out that makes the difference."

~Jenny Craig~

Photo: Copyright PhotoXpress.com

Here are the “random” thoughts that came to my mind as I read the above quote.  Hope you can relate to the flow of these thoughts:


*When you set a goal… stick to it.  When you stick to it, you succeed.  When you don’t stick to your goals, you do not only hurt the people around you, you mainly hurt yourself...

*Goals are what keep us driven.  When we vow to stay on track we vow to stay on the highway of success...and when we don’t, we turn onto the path of failure...

*By not sticking to our goals, we are basically telling ourselves that we don’t believe in ourselves...it's like we are saying, “Oh well… you’re just not good enough to stick with goals or with a plan...” and that is something we would have a hard time forgiving ourselves for...

I’m inspired by Jenny Craig’s quote to fulfill all of my wildest dreams, and to maintain each of my goals. That way, I can live my life to its fullest and be happy with the success I achieve in life as a goal-setting teen girl growing into successful womanhood.

Celebrating Women's History Month...setting goals, and sticking to them!


Danielle M. Biggs

High School Student
Trustee & Administrative Assistant ~ Lifeline Foundation, Inc.

Sharon M. Biggs, M.A., is a wife, mother, and 21st Century educational leader who serves as Co-Chair & President of Lifeline Foundation, Inc.  This 23-year educator is also Founder, Editor, and Chief Writer of LifelineExtensions.blog.  View Sharon's other published works at http://www.examiner.com/.

Contact Sharon directly for more information: sharonbiggs@mylifelinefoundation.org

"Children are the globe's most precious commodity."
(Terence H. Biggs, Jr. ~ 2009)

Introducing “MY Very Own Me” ~ defining moments of a woman’s self-assurance

Photo: Copyright PhotoXpress.com

Throughout history, women have relentlessly pursued moments when situations, environments, and individuals would not and could not define who they are as women.

These journeys in pursuit of SELF-assuredness for women, would sometimes even give the appearance of experiences that would yield predictable outcomes; if the awaited “predictions” had already come true for other women they knew or knew about.

But in reality, the sheer element of circumstantial uncertainty in everyday life may very well have been the cause of increased frustration, anxiety, anger, confusion, bad decision making, and emotional distress during a good portion of a woman’s journey.

What this means for the assertive and laser-focused woman, is that using her abilities to build the capacity to define “her own ME” is essential if she is to ever achieve and maintain a confident, poised, and secure level of self-assurance.

And for the not-so-assertive and somewhat-less-focused woman, that same capacity can only be built after SHE has initiated the strengthening and stabilizing of her ability to “construct herself.”

Solace and comfort comes in knowing and remembering that despite which of the two categories a woman may find herself at times being “defined into;” she can and should pursue, build, achieve, and maintain “her own ME” capacity.

While it’s true to some extent that a woman’s background and experiences craft and mold parts of the essence of her being, if she’s not careful; she will allow “her own ME-self” to be quickly replaced by an “everyone else’s own Me-self” version of who she is vs. who she strives to be.

The natural desire to simply be who she is, no more and no less; can ignite the self-driven quest of a woman to find “her own ME-self” and to be content and satisfied with HER own rendition of her “MY VERY OWN ME.”

“Her own ME” is something that empowers a woman to be capable and equipped to withstand and overcome any and every degree of uncertainty or unpredictability common to everyday living.

Celebrate Women’s History Month…Be your “own Me-self” and love every minute of it…

Sharon M. Biggs, M.A., is a wife, mother, and 21st Century educational leader who serves as Co-Chair & President of Lifeline Foundation, Inc.  This 23-year educator is also Founder, Editor, and Chief Writer of LifelineExtensions.blog.  View Sharon's other published works at http://www.examiner.com/.

Contact Sharon directly for more information: sharonbiggs@mylifelinefoundation.org

"Children are the globe's most precious commodity."
(Terence H. Biggs, Jr. ~ 2009)