How do I empower myself as an entrepreneur?

Updated 23 July 2026 by Chanelle Segerius-Bruce

I work with a lot of women, and a handful of men, who are experts at what they do and frequently overqualified for it. What I see stopping them is not capability. It is self-doubt and imposter syndrome, sometimes badly enough that they walk away before starting. People sign up with me for a marketing strategy and step-by-step help building an audience, and they get that. What they also get is someone in their corner about who they are. Here are five ways to empower yourself, drawn from that work.

Guard your thoughts

How you feel follows directly from what you are thinking. If you feel anxious about going live on camera, that is because of what you have decided is going to happen.

So become aware of the narrative running in your head. Which stories are you repeating that are not true and have not happened?

Fear is false evidence appearing real, and you shift it by asking better questions. What if this works? What if it goes well? What if it makes a difference to one person today, and would that be enough?

Fill your mind with the right things

I deliberately do not have terrestrial, cable or satellite television. We have Netflix and watch an hour or so in the evening, one good series watched properly from start to finish rather than five hours in a heap, plus a decent comedy.

The news trades in scaremongering. If something big enough happens, you will hear about it.

I love audiobooks. An Audible subscription will get you through two personal development or business books a month, and listening at 1.25 speed moves things along. Rather than putting the radio on out of habit, play your book on the school run or the drive to the shops. TED talks and YouTube are good sources too. Anything by Mel Robbins or Gary Vee, for me.

Choose who you spend time with

Jim Rohn said you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with, and I have not found an exception.

What changed things for me was having it modelled. I did not grow up around any of this. My mum worked for low wages at the SPCA and my dad was a chief plan examiner at the municipality, roles about as far from entrepreneurial as you can get.

If your family and friends are not a source of inspiration for this, and frankly that is not their job, then finding the right people is on you. Join a group programme, a mastermind, or work with a coach one to one. If none of that is possible yet, immerse yourself in free content and network in your industry until you can invest. My own business changed when I took the leap and worked with a high-level coach.

Do not make your partner your journal

It is tempting to unload every worry onto your other half. The entrepreneurial road is a rollercoaster. There will be big months and zero months, stretches with more clients than you know what to do with, and stretches that feel like shouting into an empty room.

That is business. You are in it for the long game.

Take the noise to a journal instead. Write it out, including the negative parts and the things genuinely frightening you. Then sit with it and ask the better questions again. How could you solve this, before rushing off to talk someone's ear off? The answers are usually already in there.

Then reach out for help

Once you have genuinely worked through it yourself, ask for help. A business friend, or your coach if you have one.

Come to it from an empowered position rather than as a victim. Things are not happening to you. Avoid the blame and the poor-me framing, because you are an adult and you arrived here through decisions you made.

Get the help, apply the solution, and act from that footing.

Key takeaways

• How you feel follows what you are thinking, so the narrative is the thing to work on.
• Fear is false evidence appearing real. Better questions shift it faster than reassurance.
• Choose your inputs deliberately. Books and talks in, rolling news out.
• You are the average of the five people you spend most time with, so choose them on purpose.
• If your circle cannot model what you want, go and find people who can.
• Journal the worry rather than making your partner carry it.
• Ask for help once you have done the thinking, and come from ownership rather than blame.

Frequently asked questions

How do I deal with imposter syndrome as an expert?

Start with the narrative rather than the credentials, because the qualifications are usually already there. Notice what you are telling yourself about what will happen, then ask what if it goes well instead.

What does FEAR stand for?

False evidence appearing real. Most of what stops people has not happened and often will not, which is why better questions work better than reassurance.

Does who I spend time with really matter?

Jim Rohn's line about being the average of the five people you spend most time with holds up. What changed things for me was having a different way of working modelled, which was nothing like the household I grew up in.

What if I cannot afford a coach or a mastermind yet?

Immerse yourself in free content and network properly in your industry until you can invest. Podcasts, talks and books will carry you a long way.

Why shouldn't I talk to my partner about business worries?

Talk to them, but do not make them the journal for every wobble. The ups and downs are constant, and writing it out first usually surfaces the answer without anyone else having to absorb it.

When should I ask for help?

After you have worked through it yourself, and from an empowered position rather than a poor-me one. Then you can actually apply the solution instead of just feeling heard.