What if confidence isn't where we begin? What if courage comes first?

This week on A Thought I Kept, I'm joined by women's leadership and career development coach Sadia Ghazanfar, founder of Slay Your Dragons, to explore the thought she has carried with her for years:

"Be brave enough to suck at something new."

Together we unpack why so many of us wait to feel confident before we start, how perfectionism keeps us stuck, and why learning, making mistakes and asking for help might be the very things that help us grow.

We talk about what happens when we're overwhelmed, burnt out or at capacity, why women often struggle to express anger, and how courage, rather than confidence, can become the foundation for meaningful change. Sadia also shares her own experience of burnout, career change and learning to stop carrying everything alone.

Whether you're navigating a career transition, feeling held back by self-doubt, experiencing imposter syndrome, or simply wondering if it's too late to try something new, I hope this conversation offers a compassionate reminder that confidence is something we build—not something we need before we begin.

In this episode we explore:

• Perfectionism and the pressure to get everything right
• Confidence vs courage: what really comes first
• Burnout, overwhelm and emotional capacity
• Women in leadership and navigating uncertainty
• Why asking for help is an act of courage
• Emotions, self-compassion and learning to begin again
• How to stop waiting until you feel ready

About Sadia Ghazanfar

Sadia Ghazanfar helps women in leadership stop abandoning themselves to lead others.

She is the founder of Slay Your Dragons and a PCC-accredited coach (ICF) and Certified Positive Intelligence® Coach. She came to this work the way many of her clients do: leading others while forgetting herself, navigating workplaces not built with her in mind, unable to see the conditioning that was causing her pain. Burnout forced her to stop, and what she found on the other side became the work. 

Sadia doesn't teach women to be more confident or palatable. She works with what's underneath; the conditioning that runs so quietly most women mistake it for their personality. Her work doesn't add more to a woman's experience, it removes what was never hers to carry. She believes courage comes before confidence, and that when a woman changes, nothing around her stays the same.

Website | LinkedIn | Instagram | Substack 

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About Claire Fitzsimmons

Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps people navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all the feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to disconnection. 

Buy Claire's first book, If Lost Start Here: Wellbeing for the Anxious, Disconnected or Uncertain here.

Subscribe to Claire's Substack newsletter here.

Find out how to work with Claire here. 

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