Stop Waiting for Validation

In today’s episode, Megan talks about something many business owners quietly struggle with:

Not confusion. Not lack of ideas.

Waiting for permission.

We often run decisions — even small daily ones — past an imaginary audience before acting.

What to post. What to offer. What to say yes or no to. How to spend time.

And without realizing it… we delay action while searching for approval.

What Waiting for Validation Looks Like

• Checking reactions before deciding
• Asking multiple people hoping for the same answer
• Measuring worth by engagement
• Delaying action until someone agrees
• Feeling confident alone — then doubting after opinions

The problem isn’t asking for advice.

The problem is outsourcing the final decision.

Why We Seek Validation

We think it gives us:

• Certainty
• Reassurance
• Protection from regret
• Shared responsibility
• Less personal failure

Validation feels like confidence.

But really…

You’re borrowing certainty instead of building it.

What It Creates

Relying on outside approval leads to:

In business

• Slow decisions
• Constant pivots
• Messaging changes
• Confused audience
• Inconsistent direction

In life

• Less self-trust
• Second-guessing
• Starting over repeatedly
• Mental exhaustion

The more opinions you collect, the harder it becomes to hear your own.

What Real Confidence Actually Is

Confidence is NOT knowing the perfect answer.

It is:

• Deciding
• Adjusting later
• Taking responsibility for the outcome

You build it by:

• Making small decisions
• Acting before consensus
• Learning through experience

Every situation is unique — experience teaches you what advice never can.

Confidence = trusting you can handle the result

A Better Way to Use Advice

We still need people.

But instead of asking:

“What should I do?”

Ask:

“What might I be missing?”

Advice should inform your decision — not make it for you.

The Truth About Doubt

You don’t eliminate doubt.

You shorten the distance between doubt and action.

Confidence grows when:

• Decisions happen faster
• Action comes sooner
• Validation becomes unnecessary

Closing Thought

The moment you stop waiting for agreement is usually the moment you start moving forward.

So today — move without permission.