Worthy

Self-doubt tends to cost people more than they realize: the promotion they never pursued, the relationship they settled for, the goal they quietly dropped. In Worthy, Jamie Kern Lima argues that the real ceiling on a life is not ambition or talent but self-worth. People do not rise to what they believe is possible, she says. They settle at what they believe they deserve, whether that shows up in business, leadership, friendships or romance.

Lima is the founder of the cosmetics company IT Cosmetics, and her earlier book, Believe It, traced her path from restaurant waitress to billion-dollar entrepreneur. Worthy is a follow-up aimed at the reader rather than at her own story. It is built as a practical guide for people who hide their doubts well, who battle imposter syndrome, who fear rejection and failure, or who have spent so long pleasing others that they have lost track of themselves.

The book walks through how to unlearn the false beliefs that feed self-doubt and replace them with ones that support you. Along the way it covers letting go of past mistakes, rebuilding self-confidence, easing the fear of failure, and changing the meaning you attach to your own story and identity. The goal is to reach a point where you believe you are enough exactly as you are.

If you have ever suspected that what holds you back is not a lack of ability but a belief about what you deserve, this book sets out to help you change that belief, step by step.