What It Means To Be A ‘Strong Woman’ Because It’s So Much More Than Being Confident

To be a strong woman means that you recognize your ability to makes mistakes, and to rise from them. Regardless of what your mistakes are, you know that going through them will cause you to learn lessons and move forward for the better.

To be a strong woman is to realize that you are not better than other women, simply different. You do not strive to tear other woman apart for the parts of them that do not match your own, yet instead celebrate with them. You take the parts of you that would be envious and judgmental and you instead know how to encourage and support—whether it’s those you’re are close to, or not.

To be a strong woman is to respect yourself enough to set your own boundaries, and follow through on them. You don’t allow friends, romantic relationships, or even family to manipulate you into things you don’t agree with—you are learning to stand on your own and staying true to the ideas and morals you hold close to your heart.

To be a strong woman is to work hard and strive towards your dreams—whether conventional or unconventional. Whether your dreams include a marriage, children, and a house in the countryside, traveling the world solo, or some sort of mix in between—you take chances and are diligent about seeing them come to fruition.

To be a strong woman is to recognize that you need help sometimes. We tend to view a strong woman as someone completely independent with no help from anyone, ever. We feel weak when we reach out to ask for support—but truthfully, there is strength in realizing we can’t do everything on our own—and to ask for help from friends, family, or even significant others is nothing short of strength.

To be a strong woman is to know that some days, you will look in the mirror and will struggle to love what you see. It’s to know that a strong woman isn’t one who never doubts or feels discouraged—but one who can also see through her faults and short-comings to recognize the good in her as well. She knows that some days will be more difficult to love herself than others, but she still does the best she can—in the big and small ways.

To be a strong woman is to know that on the days you struggle, you admit it, rather than pretending you have it all together. Everyone struggles, and to pretend otherwise is a lie that no one can hold up for long. A strong woman doesn’t always have it all together—sometimes she is still picking up the pieces on the ground and deciding where to go next. Sometimes she is still sitting in the rubble, mourning the hopes she was holding. She knows that she will eventually get back up again, but she is in no rush or no hesitancy—she will move forward as she sees fit.

To be a strong woman is to not attach that strength to her relationship status—you are still a strong woman whether you are in a relationship, single, or somewhere in between. You are not any stronger because you are alone than you are with someone standing by your side—because you know that your strength comes from within yourself, and you still carry it regardless of if you have a hand to hold. Being in a relationship may allow you to be more vulnerable, but it doesn’t diminish the strength you have. Being single doesn’t make you weak for not compromising to find someone to hold, but flexes the strength you have in a different way. Regardless, you recognize the beauty in it no matter what your situation is.

To be a strong woman is to know that sometimes, you will not feel like a strong woman at all. You will feel weak, or less experienced, or less worthy of having the word “strong” be listed in words to describe you. You may not look like every strong woman you see around you, but that’s okay—you aren’t supposed to. You have your own strength forged through experience and hurts, as well as your victories.

Your strength is still just that—strength.

And you are still a strong woman, no matter how it may appear to the rest of the world.