As a population in the 21st century, women have come a long way since the days of expectations to be barefoot and pregnant or working away in the kitchen. With more and more women becoming successful in their careers and taking on independence for themselves, it has become a norm for them to set high goals and achieve them. However, internal doubt or fears may remain due to double standards that girls face in today’s society.

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Katty Kay and Claire Shipman address all of this and more in the recent release of a sequel to their original best-selling book, creating The Confidence Code For Girls. But their work did not start with this book. Since the release of their previous book, The Confidence Code, in 2014, Kay and Shipman have been asked to speak at schools, non-profits, large corporations, and the like on behalf of inspiring people to find the empowerment that they need to succeed as an individual in this world.

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Throughout all of these visits, the authors were faced by pleas from parents over and over again to discover a way to make the The Confidence Code work for their daughters. They were simply asking for a way to make these young girls find the confidence within themselves in order to lead powerful and positive lives. The authors took these pleas into consideration and developed this new trending book.

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On the day of the release, the authors and a group of New York girls aged 12-14 were interviewed on Good Morning America. When asked to raise their hand if they would like to be more confident, each of the girls nervously laughed while 5 of the 6 girls raised their hand. The biggest problem they face is the fact that they are entering an age of self-doubt; an age which most college-aged females are still likely in.

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What happens to most girls throughout these years is the idea that they get more stuck on what others think of them rather than what they think of themselves. Deep down, these girls typically realize that what others believe isn’t true. However, with hearing it over and over again comes the thoughts that maybe others are the ones who are actually right.

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Especially in the stage of life where the real world is quickly approaching, most commonly in college-aged women, the fear of failure can be paralyzing. You want to defeat the odds and show the world just how successful a woman can be. But what if you don’t make it? Are you letting the world down? Or are you just letting yourself down?

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To some, this fear of failing yourself could stop you from taking what could be the most beneficial risk in the long run. However, taking these risks might be the biggest confidence booster you could ever discover. If you don’t take this risk, you will probably regret it. But if you do, you could fail. So how do you decide?

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Putting it all into one simple sentence would be that failure is just a part of life. No successful person will make it far in life by getting success handed to them or having someone hold their hand. You have to work hard over and over again by letting yourself fall and getting back up to become ten times stronger. Getting used to the idea of failure might be the only way you will ever realize just how lucky you are when you actually make it in life. You aren’t going to learn anything without a little bit of struggle.

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The best way to empower yourself is to become comfortable with the idea of being uncomfortable.