There’s a moment in every entrepreneur’s journey when doubt becomes louder than the dream. Maybe progress slows, or the outside validation doesn’t come as quickly as you hoped. Suddenly, you start telling yourself you aren’t ready. That you need more expertise, more experience, more confidence before you can lead.

Patty Aubrey knows that internal dialogue well.

Before she helped transform Chicken Soup for the Soul into a global powerhouse, she was the woman behind the scenes—managing the moving parts, building the structure, and keeping everything running. She wasn’t introduced as the face of the brand. She wasn’t handed a seat at the leadership table. She earned it.

Her message is simple and needed:

Stop shrinking. Step up. You’re already qualified to lead.

Patty has been at the forefront of one of the most recognizable publishing brands in the world. Her leadership helped scale Chicken Soup for the Soul into a billion-dollar enterprise with books, media, products, and a global audience.

But her rise wasn’t linear. It wasn’t glamorous. And it certainly wasn’t perfect.

Which is exactly why she’s so relatable—and so powerful.

In our conversation on The Seed, Patty pulls back the curtain on:

What keeps women from stepping fully into leadership:

• Waiting to feel more ready or more legitimate

• Downplaying success to maintain likability

• Allowing others to take the credit

• Believing someone else knows better

What accelerates confidence and visibility:

• Sharing the unpolished parts of your story

• Speaking up even when your voice shakes

• Taking credit for the work you actually do

• Understanding the value you already bring

Patty’s leadership didn’t change when she stepped forward.
What changed was who finally saw it.

When women hold back:

• Innovation slows

• Teams lose direction

• Impact stays small

• The wrong voices lead the room

Your silence has a cost.
Your voice has a purpose.

And as Patty reminds us:
Belief is not optional if you want big things to happen.

What is a story you’ve been telling yourself that keeps you small?

Now rewrite it.

The world doesn’t need a polished version of you.
It needs the real one—the one who is still figuring it out and moving anyway.

Hear Patty’s full story and leadership strategies here:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-seed-growing-your-business/id1500087271

This conversation is a must-listen if you’re building something meaningful and you want to lead with both humility and undeniable authority.

If this resonated with you, join us inside The Patch. We are building businesses and legacies together—one honest step at a time.

Sponsored by Imperium — where strong leaders and strong communities grow together. Learn more at inperium.org