If you’ve ever accomplished something huge and immediately thought, “who do I think I am?” “quién diablos té crees?”— you’re not broken, and you’re not alone. On this episode of Latina Mic Drop, host Miriam Simon gets brutally honest about self-doubt: where it comes from, what it costs us, and why so many high-achieving women — especially Latinas navigating family, culture, and career pressure — feel devalued, scared, and constantly questioned, even when they’re doing everything right.
Here’s the breakdown of what she shared, and how you can begin using it today.
Doubt Isn’t Proof You’re Unprepared. It’s Often Proof You’re Growing
Miriam opens with a reframe worth sitting with: doubt doesn’t always mean you’re not ready. Sometimes it just means you’re getting close to a new version of yourself, and that version feels unfamiliar. Becoming is unrecognizable territory and a new found identity forming.
She shares her own moment of doubting herself — wondering why clients trust her with some of their deepest, most guarded stories. That instinct to ask “why me?” is exactly the voice she wants us to interrogate, instead of automatically obeying.
Try this: Finish the sentence: “I started doubting myself when ___. What evidence did I ignore in that moment?”
The Real Question: Whose Voice Is in Your Head?
A lot of self-doubt doesn’t actually start with you. It starts with a parent, a relative, a boss, or a cultural expectation that got repeated so many times it started to sound like your own thinking.
Miriam names it directly: growing up, she was told she had to get married, have kids, and prioritize work over education, even though education mattered deeply to her. That outside voice can quietly run your decisions for years if you never stop to ask where it actually came from.
Ask yourself:
- What family (los padres, la titi, la abuela, el tio, etc.), cultural, or workplace messages still follow me around?
- Is this doubt actually mine or did someone else plant it? Who’s voice am I listening to? Is it my own?
- What would I decide if I said it out loud, in my own voice, right now?
Why Sharing a Win Can Feel So Dangerous
One of the most relatable parts of this episode is Miriam’s honesty about what happens when women — especially high-achieving women — share a win. Instead of celebration, it’s sometimes met with “who do you think you are?” “quien te crees?” or “you think you’re better than us?” “ahhh ahora te crees mejor que nosotros?”
That reaction teaches women to go quiet to stop posting the win, to stop naming the number, to shrink so no one else feels uncomfortable.
Miriam is candid about her own family dynamic, she grew up around what she calls “ballbusters” and how she’s actively working to change how she communicates her wins, and how she wants to be met, without losing the relationship.
The takeaway: if the people around you can’t celebrate your growth, that’s information about them, not a verdict on your worth.
What Self-Doubt Actually Costs You
This is the part of the episode that hits hardest. Miriam lays out, specifically, what doubt quietly steals when it’s left in charge:
- Money – undercharging or working for free far past the “proof of concept” stage, because you don’t feel “experienced enough” yet
- Opportunities – the job you didn’t apply for, the trip you didn’t take, the business you didn’t start
- Connection – the stories you keep hidden that could actually help someone else feel less alone
- Recognition – the wins you never celebrate because no one clapped the first time
She gets personal here, opening up about hiding parts of her story, including her father’s incarceration and her mother’s difficulty accepting her identity as an LGBTQ woman, for years, and what that silence cost her in connection and community.
Try this: Write down: “Doubt has already cost me ___.” Don’t edit it. Just let it be honest.
Visibility Feels Dangerous — But Invisibility Is Costing You More
Miriam names something so many women feel but rarely say out loud: it can genuinely feel unsafe to be fully seen. Fear of criticism, confrontation, rejection, or disappointing family can keep talented women small — hiding in meetings, avoiding social media, staying quiet in rooms full of senior leaders.
She admits she used to shrink herself around executives, treating herself like “a fly on the wall” instead of someone with something valuable to say and knows now it cost her real opportunities.
Her point isn’t that criticism won’t happen. It will. Some people will judge, laugh, or dismiss what you put out there. But there’s a difference between feeding the criticism and feeding the people you’re actually here to help.
How to Respond to Criticism Without Shrinking
Not every question is an attack. Miriam offers a simple filter for the next time doubt — or someone else’s comment — knocks you off balance:
- Is this useful information? Some feedback genuinely helps you improve.
- Is this projection? Sometimes people respond from their own limitations, not yours.
- Is someone testing your authority? Not every question is a challenge — sometimes people are simply trying to make an informed decision before they trust you.
Then ask: Do I need to respond? Prepare an answer for next time? Or simply let this go?
Build Your “Receipts File”
Instead of relying on other people to validate your worth, Miriam recommends building a running record of proof — a receipts file. This includes:
- Client testimonials and feedback
- Your professional “firsts”
- Successful projects and measurable results (without breaking client confidentiality)
- Situations you’ve already survived
Not to prove anything to critics, but so that on the days doubt gets loud, you have real evidence to talk back with.
Your Doubt Reset Exercise
Miriam closes the episode with a simple but powerful reset. Grab your phone or a notebook and finish these:
- Doubt has been telling me: ___
- The truth is: ___
- This week I will: ___
- The version of me I’m becoming would: ___
Then pick one thing doubt has delayed, posting the win, sending the pitch, raising your price, submitting the application, telling the truth, starting the work and take one visible action within the next 24 hours.
The Bottom Line
You don’t have to eliminate doubt before you move forward. You just have to stop treating it like it’s in charge. As Miriam puts it: “they may rain on your sunshine, but you can still dance in the rain.”
You’re allowed to take up space, charge what you’re worth, and share your wins even if the people around you were never taught how to clap for you.
Listen to the full episode of Latina Mic Drop with Miriam Simon for the complete conversation, including her personal story on visibility, identity, and reclaiming her voice after years of staying quiet.
Want to hire Miriam Simon as your executive coach, publisher or to speak at your next event, email info@miriamsimon.online. Learn more at https:www.MiriamSimon.online
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