UNAPOLOGETIC B*TCH

So I reckon the time has come to address something I for one am very guilty of and it wasn’t until recently that I realised I was doing it so much. I was on the phone to Bethany, one of the lovely PR girls I work with on a regular basis, chatting about upcoming collaborations and different brands I could potentially work with and every time she paid me a complement or praised my work I would bat it off, responding with things like “Oh I’m just lucky” or “Ah well it was the product that really made it look good.” At one point she stopped me and said “Kate! Accept the compliment. You work hard and you deserve the praise.” If I’m honest it stunned me slightly, I didn’t know how to respond and so I said… sorry. 

Sorry?! For what exactly I don’t know but that’s what I said. We laughed and she left me with one simple piece of advice – “ditch the apologies and own your success.”

I decided to write this post because I’m sure I’m not the only one that does this, even though I know how hard I work, I know what it’s taken to get this blog to where it is now and I know how many countless night I spend editing pictures and typing up content. I know all this and yet still when my achievements are acknowledged I shut down… what’s up with that?

 Top – H&M, Skirt – H&M, Glasses – C/O Ray-Ban via Glasses Direct, 

Necklace – Daniella Draper, Shoes C/O – ASOS

Photography – Zoe Griffin

Putting my feminist hat on for a sec, I think one of the reasons I, along with so many other ladies out there do this is because of the self-deprecating female culture we live in. 

Yes – so many times I’ve seen and heard the words ‘arrogant’ and ‘bossy’ being thrown around when a woman even dares to stand up and own it. We’re conditioned to believe that boasting is unbecoming but to be proud of what you do and to say ‘yep, I did a good job’ isn’t something that should be frowned upon. 

We need to start admitting to our own hard work and success. I’m not saying to walk around thinking you’re the sh*t because girl, you never are – there’s always bigger and better and the moment you think you’re the best is the moment you lose. But to walk with your head held high and say a simple ‘thank you’ when a compliment is thrown your way is just you reminding yourself of your own capability, power and strength.

So yeah, say goodbye to the “Oh it was nothing” and “I could’ve done better.” Never underestimate yourself!

Sometimes we all need reminding of our own power so that our hard work and the rewards that come from it don’t get lost. For the record, the day after my chat with Bethany I received a compliment from another client I’d worked for via email, my reply – “Thank you, I worked really hard and I’m so happy the client is pleased with it” and you know what…

 it felt great!

K x