At last week's WELLmet networking session, one of the participants shared how her professional confidence had transitioned throughout the meeting.

She'd been drawn to the professional group in order to form collegial relationships with others in the fields of wellness, creative and spiritual development. When she first arrived she was very excited for the opportunity. During introductions, she began to second guess herself. There were others in the group who did similar aspects to her work (writing a book, facilitating retreats, life coaching...). She began to feel deflated and that her work wasn't as unique as she'd like to think. After meeting up with the other participants, her excitement returned. What happened? She noticed several things:
1) While other's work might be similar, their styles/motivations/experiences/key audiences had unique differences from her own.
2) With an attitude of abundance, she realized there was more than enough room to be supportive of one another's work
3) And most importantly, she said, having connected with others doing similar work affirms that the work is necessary and needs to be in the world. (For example: Life coaching is a relatively new concept. As more and more people see the benefits of coaching--many go into the field. It now becomes a matter of identifying the ideal fit between a coach and client. So focusing on ones' own style/motivations/experiences and key audience is where a coach's services become unique).

Of course, she also remembered that she had been drawn to the event to be surrounded by supportive colleagues in similar fields. I was happy she shared this realization. I don't have a competitive nature but I have been in situations where I've felt deflated in the same way and notice when it happens for others. After she shared this insight with the group, there was a collective, relieved sigh--indicating that we all shared this feeling and were relieved to be reminded of the true positives of connecting with those in similar fields.