I am a firm believer that women should toot their own horns--that is, not shy away from self-promotion. Now hear this: There's nothing wrong with self-promotion. The guys do it, and they are called "capable," "credible" and "qualified." When women self-promote, people cringe. Why does it seem so grating and inappropriate for a woman to be vocal about her capabilities and accomplishments?

Maybe it's history. Up until the last 40 years or so, girls were brought up "not to draw attention to themselves." It was considered unseemly for a woman to step into the spotlight unless she was in Hollywood, and even there she was widely disparaged and limited in what control she could have over her own image and career.

Don't believe me? Watch an episode of the fabulous AMC series "Mad Men" and see where women were in the business arena as late as the 1960s.

Now I have to say this up-front. I love men. I respect men . . . who respect me, of course. But a lot of the discrimination from the get-go (and not just against women but against non-whites as well) has been perpetrated by white males, particularly in business in the U.S. Not all white males, of course. But look at U.S. history, please, and then look at the landscape of the upper echelons of corporate America. Hello!

I'm not here to give a history lesson, but I feel strongly about women owning their power and feeling comfortable about speaking about their strengths without apology. Let me explain my own experiences within this landscape. After years of being plagued with horrible self-esteem issues, I dared to venture out into the "limelight" when I started my internet company Cybergrrl,Inc., and was at once celebrated and disparaged.

Some people thought it was inspiring to see a woman at the forefront of an internet company while others--women included--thought it was selfish and arrogant of me to "hog the attention," totally disregarding the fact that I always referred reporters to many other women and included other women's names in my interviews. I started an organization called Webgrrls International not only to bring women together to help one another succeed with technology and in the tech industries but also to give women the opportunity to stand in the spotlight themselves.

Many women were afraid to step into the glare of attention (and what a glare it can be). Whatever the reasons, they shrunk back into the shadows, then grumbled about the women who were eager, willing and able to shine.

Stay tuned for an upcoming article about several women entrepreneurs who also feared tooting their own horns but overcame that fear with positive results. And I'll be getting advice from an expert who works exclusively with businesswomen to help cut through our fears so we can all move forward--not just to promote ourselves, but to promote one another as well.

How do you feel about self-promotion or about women promoting what they do?