920: Big Asian Energy With Sheena Yap Chan

·44 min·4 clips

Sheena Yap Chan's new book responds to a report saying gender parity won't happen until the year 2158.

This episode is a crossover interview where Sheena Yap Chan, host of The Tao of Self-Confidence, is interviewed by John Wang on his podcast Big Asian Energy. Sheena introduces her second book, 'Bridging the Confidence Gap: How Empowered Women Change the World', published by Wiley. She reveals the book was sparked by a World Economic Forum report indicating gender parity won't be achieved until 2158, a timeline that has since been delayed to 2158. Sheena defines the confidence gap as the disconnect between women's capabilities and their self-belief, often causing hesitation. She shares a personal anecdote about almost rejecting her first book deal from Wiley due to imposter syndrome, questioning her authority on leadership. The discussion includes a comparison where men might apply for promotions at 50% readiness while women feel they need to be 110% ready. Sheena emphasizes that the confidence journey doesn't have to be solitary, advocating for seeking help through books, podcasts, or communities. She touches on the challenges of self-promotion, noting women are often conditioned to see it as 'tacky', and uses the success of the Barbie movie as an example of effective promotion. The conversation also covers dealing with rejection, with Sheena sharing that she sometimes gets five rejections in a day but focuses on the few 'yes' responses. John and Sheena discuss age-related perspectives, with Sheena mentioning she wrote her first Wiley book in her forties and encouraging listeners that it's never too late to start. They explore the idea of making an 'offer' rather than an 'ask' in self-promotion to reframe it as providing value. The episode concludes with Sheena offering a tip to work through personal traumas to build self-belief and promoting where to find her book and resources.

As heard by us

A grounded confidence conversation about asking for help, spotting blind spots, and looking past the polished social-media image.

Confidence comes through as something built with other people, not performed alone. John Wang, host of Big Asian Energy, speaks with Sheena Yap Chan, author of Bridging the Confidence Gap and host of The Tao of Self-Confidence, about the inner critic, asking for help, and the…

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You want confidence that can meet the messy, uncurated parts of being human.

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