How Senior Female Leaders Can Build Confidence That Lasts
- Mar 25, 2025
- 3 min read
Gaëlle is a renowned Visibility & Confidence Coach empowering senior women leaders to be seen, recognised, and valued. She is the founder of A Rockstar Mindset, co-author of Women Making A Difference, and UK Ambassador for Psychologies magazine. Gaëlle has been featured in NBC, CBS, and Psychologies.
Gorgeous, if you believe that building your confidence is the key to career success, I have a truth bomb for you: that approach isn’t sustainable. Why? Because your confidence will be built on your capacity to perform—being the overachiever, the firefighter, the high performer.
The result? Your confidence becomes dependent on what you do rather than who you are. There’s nothing wrong with being a go-getter at times; it’s necessary.
But when your self-worth is tied to external validation, it’s time to pause and have an honest conversation with yourself.
Because you are a human being, not a human doing.
By tying your worth to performance, you train your mind to believe that your worth is conditional. The result? This belief can lead to self-sabotage and burnout.
You might be in a male-dominated environment that's highly competitive, and you feel you have no choice but to keep going.
But as Albert Einstein said, "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them."
To break free, we need a different approach.
The key to confidence is self-confidence
What does it mean?
Your self-confidence is a being state. It’s about who you are, not what you do.
Your self-confidence is like the heart of the ocean, undisturbed by the storm raging above, remaining like the bottom of the sea: grounded, serene, and calm.
What’s the difference?
Self-confidence is not about how much you accomplish.
It’s not about being:
a high-performer
a firefighter
Or the amount of dollars you generate for your company
The outcome? It will get you stuck in a hamster wheel, chasing the next milestone.
It’s like dating the same (toxic) partner over and over again. You’re aware of the cycle, but you’re not able to break free from it.
The result? You’ll never feel fully satisfied, until one day you wonder why you chased promotion after promotion and what your purpose is.
The shift: From performance-based confidence to embodied confidence
If you love learning (like me) and enjoy being challenged through a PhD or a women’s leadership program, that’s great.
But if you do it to prove that you’re the best performer, you’ll fall back into a hamster wheel. The answer? Self-confidence comes from within.
What’s next?
Choose self-trust over self-doubt. Your intuition is your best GPS; trust yourself, no matter what.
Secondly, commit to personal growth for self-actualisation. It will transform your self-confidence into embodied confidence.
If you have built performance-based confidence and want to build confidence that lasts, I invite you to book a visibility strategy call with me here.
Read more from Gaëlle Berruel
Gaëlle Berruel, Visibility & Confidence Coach, Motivational Speaker
Gaëlle is a leader in visibility and confidence coaching for senior women leaders. Seven years ago, she hid behind her laptop, longing to help women be recognised for their work and value.
Without a roadmap to visibility from a place of authority and authenticity, she created one, becoming the fullest expression of herself: radiant, fulfilled, and unapologetic. Today, as the CEO of A Rockstar Mindset, she empowers women to be visible, recognised, and make an impact. Gaëlle is a multi-award-winning coach, a sought-after speaker, and a best-selling author featured in top global publications. Her mission: You're a diamond in the rough. Let me help you to become the Rockstar of your life.
