Quietly Confident

Quietly confident?
Waiting in the wings?

An introverted woman's guide to life positioning
Carol Stewart

Filament 

978-1913192693

Tackling and overcoming issues of quietness and shyness is the main premise of Quietly Visible and in its own way, the book pulls no punches in its focus of intent. The idea of being the quiet one at the party left in the shadows by the extroverts who can make small talk and shamelessly push themselves forwards may recall the 1980's movie Working Girl where the Melanie Griffith character has her quiet but clever ideas stolen by the louder and more assured character played by Sigourney Weaver. Talking about what exists beneath the surface in everyday life but may not be acted on is the enduring cautionary tone in this book and yet also serves as its gift of hope as well. After reading you might change your perception from 'watch out for the quiet ones' to 'watch and admire the quiet ones'. 

Using character studies of persons who have impacted change in their own life, the book draws on the author’s own life experience as a single, introverted mum in the corporate world, raising an extrovert son. Counselling and differentiated assessment tools offer positive paths to those seeking to foster change through self-help initiatives, through courses offered by the author. The journey up the corporate ladder in this book is more about coming to terms with the self first and pinpointing individual strengths and doing the research instead of speaking for the sake of it, or being false to one’s true nature. It seems prescient to talk about this cause in an era of Pandemics, Black Lives Matter, and the Me Too Movement, as the cause of glass ceiling busting ideologies and lateral thinking are currently in vogue. Perhaps the successes of extroverts who broker deals in corporate power moves are inbedded in the psyche of those who came of age in the 1980's and 1990's and watched from the shadows the grandiose gestures of others, like the Donald Trump grandstanding and deal brokering in bombastic style.

This book is for the quiet ones who work their way up through the ranks, listening and waiting for their chance to shine. It is also about empowerment and feeling that there is a valued place for all members; after all it takes different strokes for different folks to make the world go round. WE know that. You only get one chance to pitch a producer in Hollywood, they say, so this book is about ensuring that you sharpen your skills and look into the reasons behind why projects are green lighted. The devil is in the detail and they do say watch out for the quiet one in the room. This book is about lifting the self-esteem off the floor in a world of loud rock music and letting the acoustics of the unplugged instruments be heard.

A great deal of the book speaks of Carol Stewart's experience as a single woman of the BAME community who has survived and thrived in traditional male dominated workplace. As a leader in the BAME community it is also inspiring as Stewart uses real like examples of being a single mother who took on a leadership position in a company and also because a successful life coach and mentor to others.

The self-reflection exercises speak to the layman who is looking to identify the strengths and weaknesses in past working relationships and the onus is on that person whom is looking to overcome their fears but also doesn't want to change their personality either. This book really spoke to me and seems a practical guide to moving forwards without all the showy emotions that garner quick attention but are ultimately unfulfilling and meaningless. It is metaphysical in spirit and a meditative in tone.

The title appealed to me because the author spoke of the quiet ones in the room and I have long thought that the quiet ones are the ones to watch out for.

I will certainly be intrigued to know what Carol Stewart will write about next as this guide goes on to become a bible for the shy and quietly visible leaders in the new millennium.