Why I’m Giving Myself More Credit This Year
Over the years I’ve often felt like as women we are so much harder on ourselves when it comes to celebrating our accomplishments. Whether they are big or small, no matter what we do, it sometimes may seem there is just so much more work to do that there just isn’t enough time to celebrate. This is me talking from personal experience as it’s taken me over five years in the music industry to finally say oh yeah hey, I did some shit. I often think it has a lot to do with the injustice we face as women, for me especially the music industry. Whilst I have been respected in the music industry, I do think people didn’t think I would be able to make a full-time career from it. To be honest, people still wonder what else I do for work. I’ve come to the conclusion that it comes down to our own expectations of success. Our own version of what a successful business is. Sometimes I think that I haven’t even reached the surface, but that’s my own brand of success, deep down I know that I should be celebrating these wins. So whilst the year has just begun, I have decided 2020 is the year that I will be giving myself more credit and you should too.
If They Can, Why Can’t I?
When I first established my blog, I told nobody really about it. It was just a side-hustle, something that I did for fun, and you know I wasn’t getting paid for it so I never felt like it was an achievement. It’s been 8 years since I have established SYS (www.stimulateyoursoul.com), and looking back I wish I told everyone about my blog. I say this because that small blog brought me to establishing a music PR agency and travel the world. The reason I didn’t celebrate or talk about it was that back then I had only a few views, not many followers and sometimes I felt like a fraud. But then I would meet someone who was in a similar situation and their eyes lit up when they talked about their blog, and I thought man, why am I so afraid to talk about my work like that? It’s a big deal to put yourself out there, as a writer, or as a creative, you may never know where your journey is going to take you. But the beginnings of things, are the most joyous ones for me, mostly because I can remember the fear, a fear that most people ask me how I’ve overcome today and the only thing I can tell them is that you just have to put yourself out there. Nobody cares about what you’re doing, I know that sounds bad, but most people will celebrate with you when you are truly happy and proud of your product no matter how it turns out. The ability to try, to be vulnerable and to do something different, that’s brave and that is something you should most definitely credit yourself for. Not everyone does, they only dare to dream and in the end, if you do it, they then live through you. This creates inspiration and the cycle of uplifting each other continues.
Lead By Example
There are moments of doubt, and that is completely natural. If we weren’t afraid then everyone would do it, right? I’ve learned over the years that you may not be perfect, you may not know everything, but you do know and have your own experiences that may be of use to someone else. Literally anybody out there, and it’s knowing that acknowledging that you may not know it all, but have gone through some transitions/growth to be able to establish yourself, that in itself is something that you can share and be proud of. Once people, especially women start seeing that, then perhaps we can all start sharing our wins more proudly be it big or small to ensure that we create a safe space for us all.
Because Life Is Too Short
I know that’s a cheesy one, but it’s so completely true. Whilst you’re afraid to live your dreams, someone else is doing it and you’re just sitting there on the sidelines thinking, “Hey I could do that”. Well, that’s true, but are you? The only thing you are doing is blocking yourself, your potential. The big thing for me is when others shout my achievements, which gives me the courage and the ability to accept my own wins. This then pushes me to be more vocal even though in the beginning it made me feel so uncomfortable. Now it comes more naturally, I may not shout my achievements via the rooftops but I most definitely am proud of myself and give credit where credit is due and that’s to me first and foremost.
Kind regards,
Margaret Tra.
Bio: A hint of sweet with a dash of spice, spell-bounding smooth selector Maggie Tra uses the world as her playground. The Australian-Cambodian's DJ sets bring finesse and flair to the dance-floor by embracing the culture of the land she's in with wholeness and conviction. Whether she’s spinning Hip Hop, Soul and R&B tunes to Disco, the emerging DJ's love for travel has allowed her to grace the decks in Brussels, Berlin, London, Australia, and Vietnam.
Establishing herself from humble beginnings, Maggie started from behind the scenes in the music industry as a journalist, blogger, and radio host. In 2011, she founded music publication 'Stimulate Your Soul', which soon branched out as a radio show on Australia's renowned KISS FM, cementing Maggie as a trusted tastemaker.
Beyond her own pursuance, Maggie is dedicated to supporting emerging artists and empowering women in hip hop. She's brought her 'Boss Lady' workshops across Asia & Europe, co-published an e-book and has recently started a new organization for uplifting women in the music industry called 'SYS Sister Sounds'. A first of its kind in Hanoi, Vietnam, Maggie has also established a DJ school called ‘Pho The Girls’, which focuses on helping Asian women get into the music industry.