‘Tis the season. Job hunting season that is.

Or at least that’s what I told my mom when I went home over spring break, in desperate need of business professional attire to don at upcoming interviews for summer positions.

Not owning a single pair of dress pants or closed toed shoes, I subsequently spent a whole afternoon sifting through the clearance rack at the Ann Taylor outlet, preparing to dress to impress. But as I hosted my own fashion show in the dressing room, I began to analyze every inch of my appearance. Did these clothes make me look polished enough? Qualified enough? How was I supposed to wear my hair with this shirt? I didn’t even want to think about putting on makeup with this outfit.

As these questions raced through my mind, I reached one conclusion: the job hunt for women is much more stressful than the job hunt for men. For men, it’s easy — walk in, wow the employer with a powerful handshake and a simple suit, confidently ace the interview. When they walk out, they are secure with a new paycheck written out for a salary 20% higher than the amount a woman in the same position makes. For women, it’s not so simple – walk in with shaky confidence, only to have exterior appearance immediately assessed. Walking out with the job is not a guarantee.

For women, the job hunt does not come without its share of hardships. There will be barriers, but they are not insurmountable. According to the article “7 Job-Search Barriers You Could Face as a Woman (and How to Break Them Down)” from Glamour, some of the most common issues women encounter include “unconscious bias, traditionally male-dominated fields, and the gender wage gap.”

Another problem that women face today includes discriminating job ads, that intentionally use language that deter women from applying. According to Glamour, however, women should not let the language of the ad prevent them from applying. Instead, they should prove employers wrong by demonstrating “those traits aren’t limited to men alone.”

Women also struggle to exhibit strong negotiating skills in interviews, and if they get the job they will often get a salary much lower than their experience and skills are worth. Questions of family status can also be a form of discrimination women face, as employers will question if or when a potential hire is thinking of having kids.

Yet one of the biggest hurdles women face today is one they create themselves: lack of confidence. According to the Glamour piece, “Too many times, women will go through a hand-wringing process of how much, if at all, they are qualified for jobs.” A study completed by Tara Mohr for the Harvard Business Review found that fear of failure most often held women back, or they otherwise judged themselves unqualified to hold the position.

But women should not hold themselves back from taking the chance. In the wise words of Beyoncé, “Who run the world? Girls.” It’s time to make these words a reality.