It is International Women’s Day today.
Thought Leaders is the community that changed my relationship with women.
Women have complicated relationships. From the beginning of time, women were pitched against each other for survival. They saw each other for competition while they went about securing the strongest and best provider to ensure the safety of themselves and their children. Working on the belief that they were not able to provide for themselves, earn for themselves or speak for themselves - competing for the ‘best man’ was their only hope.
Fast forward thousands of years. We are still competing. Female rivalry happens when a woman uses her power to keep another woman down, mistreats her, or competes unfairly. Women are still fighting for positions or opportunities that are often more readily available to men. We are competing for the one space at the board table. A big driver of female rivalry is the concept of “one seat at the table.” There is a perceived lack of opportunities for women.
Abundance is the answer. Abundance is when you have more than you need. It is the opposite of scarcity.
I am incredibly proud of the Thought Leaders Community. We are a community of abundance. There is an abundance of advice and information in our curriculum and enormous amounts of support and generous energy in our community. I am in awe of the statistics that we have for women. For the supportive space that we have created.
58% of our school community identify as women. In a school that teaches experts to be commercially smart, I love that number.
We have a strong community of women who have learnt to value themselves. They have learnt how to position themselves and most importantly they know what they bring to any table. They are comfortable charging what they are worth. They know the value that they bring to companies, organisations, and industries.
Thought Leaders taught me to know and own my value. I was seen and heard. I was supported and stretched. I became CEO three years ago because I am passionate about offering that same opportunity to others.
Happy International Women’s Day!
If you want to learn more about Thought Leaders Business School, join us at our next discovery session.
Lisa O'Neill
CEO