7 Simple Self-Advocacy tips

Posted on December 31, 2022 by Rebecca Zahara St, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.

I’ve been thinking a lot about self-advocacy lately, and how our roots for self- advocacy sprout in our childhoods. This got me to thinking, so many of us struggle with vocalizing our boundaries as a result of the same conflicting messages. I can only speak from my experience. However, from what I know so many of us were raised on a “closed mouths don’t get fed mentality” while simultaneously being taught “to stay in a child’s place”. Conveniently enough, it was extremely important to stay in our place whenever we had a conflicting point of view or one that challenged our elders to think outside of their norm.

Self advocacy is the process of communicating your needs to others. Needless to say our foundational tools for self-advocacy affect us in our everyday lives. Here are some examples of self-advocacy scenarios:

1.Explaining to your parents that you’d prefer a different career path
2.Explaining challenges to a manager at work
3.Asking for help from your community
4.Asking a teacher for extra help

I’m sure these simple scenarios sound pretty familiar and we often encounter daily situations where we could better advocate for ourselves. Many of us may have been taught conflicting messages however, self advocacy is a tool you can learn at any time.

Lets go over 7 strategies:

1.Listen to that little voice
We all know the feeling we get when something doesn’t sit right with us. Stop ignoring that feeling. Investigate.

2.Prioritize what you want and need
Start to reflect on what you may need or want help with from yourself and others. { i.e. better boundaries, better communication etc. }

3.Prepare
Make a plan and role play different scenarios where you may need to advocate for yourself { i.e. role playing in a mirror on your own or with others }

4.Speak up
Communicate your needs to others. If you are shy some scenarios may require more assertive communication.

5.Accountability
Be responsible for your decisions. Be proud of yourself when you do something right and accept responsibility when you make mistakes.

6.Practice Self-awareness
Learn your strengths and weakness, likes and dislikes

7.Practice
The only way to get better at something is by practicing. Practice makes us prepared.

Self-advocacy skills can help you manage your expectations while also providing you with clarity on your wants and needs. Being able to advocate for ourselves allows us to show up fully. Learning how to effectively communicate our wants and needs allows us to be more confident and independent when making life decisions. Self-advocacy is a tool that allows us to be present and self-aware in our lives.

I affirm that these tools will allow you to be more assertive and speak up for your wants and needs.