At the historic Tulsa Club Hotel on Thursday, the Tulsa Regional Chamber made some history of its own, launching its first official Women’s Programming Series event. 

In front of about 220 attendees, Tulsa-based international keynote speaker Tracy Spears laid out the liberating power of confidence and how it can embolden women in the workplace. 

Spears, founder of leadership academy The Leader Lab, illustrated how women often misperceive their own abilities, prompting them to devalue their contributions through self-diminishing language. 

Among her takeaways was the importance of casting aside self-doubt. 

“If somebody said the same things to you that your inner critic was saying to you, you would not hang out with that person, anymore,” she said. “…Some of you are still hanging out with that person. Stop it. You have to curate your personal ecosystem. You have to be very mindful about who you share space and energy with.” 

The event was held in the ballroom of the Tulsa Club, which was established in 1927 but sat vacant more than 20 years before reopening as the Tulsa Club Hotel in 2019. 

Presented Thursday by the Bank of Oklahoma, Summit Financial Group and Williams, the Women’s Programming Series is open only to members and is designed to connect, inspire and champion women across our region. 

Spears, who also spoke at a September gathering held to gauge interest in the new programming, said women must redefine any negative version of themselves. 

“If you’re thinking about all the things you’re not, you’re not able to think about all the things that you are,” she said. “…Men have this external attribution and women have an internal attribution. 

“If we were to all take a test and the women didn’t do well on the test, all of us would say, ‘I should have studied more. I’m not smart enough.’ Most men would say, ‘That was the worst teacher I ever had.’” 

Participants peppered the program with themes from roundtable discussions, and Spears urged the audience to become more self-aware and be prepared to share their views. 

“Don’t comment on everything, but at least have one thing to say,” she said. “At every meeting, we need to hear your voice at least one time. Normalize a woman’s voice around that table.” 

In closing, Spears again reminded leaders to recalibrate their mindsets to reflect truth. 

“Don’t believe everything you think; your gut instincts are biased,” she said. “Your gut instincts are biased. We can do better with that.  

“When you think about those stories you’re telling yourself, reframe those stories…And by the way, when she tells you you’re amazing, believe her.”