THE ABILITY to identity one’s own self-worth is key to fulfilling people’s destiny.
That is the message of regional community advocate Belinda Tilley – founder of the I-Myself project – who supports people in need through school and church-based workshops.
Now Ms Tilley is using her platform and experience to support women in achieving their goals through the Herself project.
Involving 10 women and 20 mentors from the Limestone Coast, Ms Tilley said the project aimed to highlight strengths and identify self-worth through various one-on-one and group workshops and activities.
Supported by Mount Gambier City Council and the Stand Like Stone Foundation, Ms Tilley said there were no prerequisites for the program.
“Most people think self-worth is marked by success, money, relationships, children’s success and even achievements,” she said.
“We are worthy right now as we are living and breathing human beings.
“It is not dependent on your gender, financial status, success in any area, everybody is worthy of bringing something to world as they are.”
Ms Tilley said through the project, a key element would be replacing negative thinking with positivity.
“The voice who speaks the loudest in everybody’s head is our own,” she said.
“If it is a negative thought, kick it the curb because it is actually proven to change structure in your brain.
“It takes a long time for positivity to stick and that is why this program will be running for 20 weeks, not one quick workshop.”
Ms Tilley said the program specifically focused on women as she believed some were more susceptible to self-doubt.
“It seems us as women, we are harder on ourselves and are comparing all the time,” she said.
“I feel like women are much more aware of social pressures and there could be a lot of reasons why somebody could have lost their way – whether it be violence, relationship breakdown, death or a personal issue.
“Through this project, we do not want to rescue you, we want to tell them ‘you have this girl’ and be walking out confident and comfortable in their own skin.”
Still in its planning stage, Ms Tilley hopes Herself will include weekly meetings to undertake learning, games, crafts and social interaction.
“It will not be like a lecture, it will be us sharing life stories,” she said.
“Alongside we will be training 20 different mentors and at around week five, mentors will also start meeting with participants.
“There will be two mentors per participant and we will be offering different types of workshops which complement the needs of each participants.”
Ms Tilley said workshops could include financial planning, budgeting, how to deal with rentals and property investments, job interviews and self-appearance strategies.
All female community members are invited to apply for a scholarship worth around $3500 for the not-for-profit Herself project.
Visit www.gofundme.com/f/Herself to donate to the project.
Applications for scholarships are expected to open by May.
