#LeadershipTuesdays: Be Okay With Not Knowing...Jessica Alba

"I needed people telling me no. I needed people to not get it and to look at me cross-eyed for me to really figure out exactly what I was going to do and how I was going to do it. It's something that I had to learn as a woman in business... a) Ask for help and to not be afraid of criticism; b) And when you don't know what to do, to be okay with not knowing but learning. You just have to figure it out!"

Jessica Alba, Co-Founder--The Honest Co.; award-winning and Golden Globe nominated Actress

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. So many times when women are faced with a new job opportunity, a promotion or even the opportunity to become a part of a new venture, they feel anxiety and deselect themselves because they don't have all of the skills they believe are required for said position or opportunity. Sheryl Sandberg, CEO of Facebook, mentioned this in her book "Lean In" saying,

“In addition to the external barriers erected by society, women are hindered by barriers that exist within ourselves. We hold ourselves back in ways both big and small, by lacking self-confidence, by not raising our hands, and by pulling back when we should be leaning in."

Whether you refer to this phenomenon as the imposter syndrome or the confidence gap, almost every woman, and some minorities too, has had to confront these feelings. Those feelings are really feelings of fear.

In today's Leadership Tuesdays' feature, Jessica Alba, who spoke at a 2015 Forbes Women's Summit and was featured on the cover of Forbes Magazine in June 2015, speaks about not only confronting her own inner feelings about "not knowing" everything that may she feel is required to make a good business decision, but also the added pressure of being negatively stereotyped because of her looks, current profession or the fact that she is a female. Jessica encourages us to be okay with the dissonance that comes from not having all of the answers at the moment of decision. We need to give more credit and feel more comfortable with our "women's intuition". That is the inner "knowing" or feeling that guides us when we don't have all of the answers or information. "Be okay with not knowing...", she says. Instead take the position that 'I am smart and what ever I don't know right now, I can learn'. 

Yes, we are smart and we are capable of doing great things if we work hard,  totally believe in ourselves, recognize the nay-saying voice of fear within us and ignore the chorus of people who don't believe in us, 'just because'.

To see today's brief video featuring Jessica Alba, click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays or WOMEN AT LIBERTY, click here.  

--Nona O., womenatliberty.com

What Is Your Worth?...James H. Aughey

Good conscience is sometimes sold for money, but never bought with it.

--James H. Aughey 

Seeing God

The earth belongs to God! Everything in all the world is his! He is the one who pushed the oceans back to let dry land appear. Who may climb the mountain of the Lord and enter where he lives? Who may stand before the Lord? Only those with pure hands and hearts, who do not practice dishonesty and lying. They will receive God’s own goodness as their blessing from him, planted in their lives by God himself, their Savior.

Psalm 24:1-5, The Living Bible

Experiencing Peace Is A Process...Jill Bolte Taylor

“To experience peace does not mean that your life is always blissful. It means that you are capable of tapping into a blissful state of mind amidst the normal chaos of a hectic life.” 

--Jill Bolte Taylor

Don't Be Afraid...C. JoyBell C.

“Don't be afraid of your fears. They're not there to scare you. They're there to let you know that something is worth it.”
 

― C. JoyBell C.

 

"Know This: You're Beautiful!"...Thich Nhat Hanh

“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.” 

--Thich Nhat Hanh

Take A Breath...Etty Hillesum

“Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.”

--Etty Hillesum

#LeadershipTuesdays: Ways Of Dealing With Differences...Mary Parker Follett

"There are three ways of dealing with difference: domination, compromise, and integration. By domination only one side gets what it wants; by compromise neither side gets what it wants; by integration we find a way by which both sides may get what they wish."  

--Mary Parker Follett

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Inevitably, we will experience times in our professional careers where we will disagree with a colleague on an issue or how to solve a problem. How we view that colleague and their abilities/capabilities determines how we will approach resolving the conflict. 

As highlighted in today's article, "5 Ways to Promote Female Camaraderie at Work" by Maria Russo, women can become prey to negativity or perpetuate it because of our natural tendency to compare ourselves with other females we are around. This comparison can lead to negative behavior that manifest itself in acts of cattiness, jealousy, competitiveness and gossiping.  It is hard enough to excel in the workplace as a woman without engaging in petty conflicts with another woman who should be an ally.

Ms. Russo challenges us in the Inc.com article to rise above the comparisons and focus our energies on accomplishing the work at hand. She also encourages us to foster community in the workplace by being supportive of others. That means both being willing and open to receiving support as well as giving support. When we are willing to give and receive support from our colleagues, we create camaraderie which in and of itself positively affects our work environment. 

To read today's article, click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays or WOMEN AT LIBERTY, click here. 

Take The Challenge and Go For It!...Terrie M. Williams

"You’ll be pathetic or flatline for the rest of your life if you don’t. Thank God that you’re scared, because it means that right before you is something that’s going to take your game to the next level. So go for it. Listen to your inner voice and treat everyone the same. You never know in what disguise God is coming to you."

--Terrie M. Williams, Public Relations Strategist, Author, Inspirational Speaker, Therapist and Philanthropist.

http://terriewilliams.com

Be The Best Man You Can Be...Denzel Washington

"Put your slippers way under your bed so when you get up in the morning, you have to get on your knees to find them. And while you're down there, start your day with prayer. Ask for wisdom. Ask for understanding. I'm not telling you what religion to be, but work on your spirit. You know, mind, body, and spirit. Imagine—work the brain muscle. Keep the body in tune—it's your temple. All things in moderation. Continue to search. That's the best part of life for me—continue to try to be the best man." 

--Denzel H. Washington, Academy and Golden Globe Award-winning Actor, Director, and Philanthropist

Denzel and Pauletta Washington and children--
(l-r) Olivia (twin), Katia, Malcolm (twin) and John David

Being Their Daddy...Archie Manning

"I wasn't their coach. I never coached them. I tried to be their daddy and play that role. Be there for them for support, for advice, if they ask for it...if they needed. Try to point them in the right way. They were good kids. They were easy kids to raise. There is no perfect family here. Don't get me wrong. We had little deals, little things just like every family does. But all in all, it was a wonderful experience for Olivia and me to raise those three boys. We're all still really close. We're so blessed."

--Archie Manning, former NFL Quarterback, Father of Super Bowl winning quarterbacks, Peyton and Eli Manning

Eli, Cooper, Olivia, Peyton, and Archie Manning

Cause Your Angels To Sing...August Wilson

“Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing.”
 
--August Wilson

You Must Nurture Yourself To Blossom...Deborah Day

“Nourishing yourself in a way that helps you blossom in the direction you want to go is attainable, and you are worth the effort.” 

– Deborah Day

Actions Reveal True Character...Steve Maraboli

“Stay alert! Don’t let someone’s words blind you from their behavior...

They can say all the right things, they can make you feel things you've never felt before, but don't be fooled; their actions will reveal their true character, desires, and priorities.

Behavior speaks; pay attention to what it tells you. Behavior is math; pay attention to what it reveals.”

--Steve Maraboli

#LeadershipTuesdays: Becoming An Effective Leader...Aja L. Brown

“I think every leader must possess vision and they absolutely have to have a heart of service. And in order to be an effective leader you have to mobilize other leaders around you.”

Aja L. Brown, Mayor, Compton, California, 2013 --

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. In this Leadership Tuesdays' article, we meet Aja Lena Brown, the youngest mayor of Compton, California to be elected. At 33 years old, she is the Chief Executive Officer of a city with a population of more than 96,000 people (2010 Census) and a total 2014/2015 budget of almost $53 million.

Although Compton has been notoriously known for gang violence and gangs including the Bloods and the Crips, the devastating 1992 Rodney King Riots, rappers like Ice Cube, and its most famous athletes--Venus and Serena Williams, the world of professional tennis' winningest sisters, Mayor Brown is on a path to change the image of her city. She was profiled in a 6/10/15 Forbes article on leadership, "Brewing Success One Cup Of Coffee At A Time",  by Don Yaeger in which she offered the quote listed above. This millennial is casting a new vision for Compton that includes a community rich in culture, family life, and low levels of unemployment. She told Forbes that,

"An effective leader is able to reach people in their natural environment and extract their experiences and knowledge about the issues that impact them.  By this, you can show that you care about people not just from words, but by spending time and making sure they have the resources that they need.”

Mayor Brown is doing just that and seeing results. According to the article, crime is down by 34 percent, unemployment has decreased by 5 percent and more than 1200 new jobs has been added. She is committed to making a positive change in her city by believing in its residents, staying connected to them by regularly meeting with them in informal "meet and greets", and casting a vision of a better future for all. We salute Mayor Brown and wish her and her city well!

To view today's article click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays or WOMEN AT LIBERTY, click here. 

Nona O.

The One Force That Unleashes Creativity...Yo-Yo Ma

Passion is one great force that unleashes creativity, because if you're passionate about something, then you're more willing to take risks.

Yo-Yo Ma, Grammy Award winning and world renown Cellist

Faith Is...

Faith is...Believing God is present when everybody else is absent.

Unknown

²² The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; ²³ they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 The Bible (English Standard Version)

A Sign Of A Pure Heart...José Harris

“Tears shed for another person are not a sign of weakness. They are a sign of a pure heart.”

--José N. Harris

Your Life Has Purpose...R J Anderson

“I realized then that even though I was a tiny speck in an infinite cosmos, a blip on the timeline of eternity, I was not without purpose.”

 -- R. J. Anderson, Ultraviolet
 

You Can Do Anything!...Sabrina Bryan

"You can do anything as long as you have the passion, the drive, the focus, and the support."
  
Sabrina Bryan

Stand Up For Yourself...Queen Latifah

“You almost have to step outside yourself and look at you as if you were someone else you really care about and really want to protect. Would you let someone take advantage of that person? Would you let someone use that person you really care about? Or would you speak up for them? If it was someone else you care about, you'd say something. I know you would. Okay, now put yourself back in that body. That person is you. Stand up and tell 'em, "Enough!” "

--Queen Latifah

#LeadershipTuesdays: Majority Rules Are Not Always Best...Leo Tolstoy

“Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.”

― Leo Tolstoy, A Confession

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Today's Leadership Tuesdays will focus on the subject of business ethics.  Our news headlines are filled with stories of individuals who have made bad decisions because of lapses in judgement and gotten caught in criminal investigations that led to trials and jail time.  Some of the people are prominent politicians, some are corporate executives, and some are everyday people like you and me. As the author of today's featured article intimated, learning business ethics or ethical practices is an ongoing process. It's not easy to always make the right decision. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it. 

However, when making any type of decision that may involve potential ethical violations, it helps to have a strong ethical foundation. Angelia White, the author of the blog, "5 Basic Business Ethics Tips", gives us a very practical definition of business ethics and great examples of how she approaches situations in the workplace as an employer, business owner, and leader. At the end of the article she gives advice on some tools that will help strengthen you in your practice of business ethics and help you  protect yourself from those who would violate business ethics at your expense.

Angelia White is Publisher, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Hope for Women Magazine. Her passionate dedication towards the Magazine has been evolving for almost a decade. She has a background in publishing and is owner and president of Virtuous Publications, Inc., which serves as the Magazine’s publishing company. Angelia has over 20 years experience in business administration and is a business graduate of Ball State University.

To view today's article click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays or WOMEN AT LIBERTY, click here. 

Choose Honor...Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Pride comes in two flavors; be careful which you choose. Choose honor, not ego.
 
-- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

You're Not Alone...Sheri Dew

“We're not alone--at least, we're alone only if we choose to be alone. We're alone only if we choose to go through life relying solely on our own strength rather than learning to draw upon the power of God. ”
 
--Sheri L. Dew

The Benefit of Hindsight...S.J. Watson

“It's so difficult, isn't it? To see what's going on when you're in the absolute middle of something? It's only with hindsight we can see things for what they are.”
 
--S.J. Watson

When We're Valued...Varsha Sharma

When we're valued, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.

Varsha Sharma 

What Will You Do With Your Defining Moment?...Richard Pound

Occasions for defining moments do not arise every day. When they do, we must seize the opportunities they present for improving everyone's life.

--Richard Pound

Harnessing The Power Of Conflict...Margaret Heffernan

"But it strikes me that the biggest problems we face, many of the biggest disasters that we've experienced, mostly haven't come from individuals, they've come from organizations, some of them bigger than countries, many of them capable of affecting hundreds, thousands, even millions of lives. So how do organizations think? Well, for the most part, they don't. And that isn't because they don't want to, it's really because they can't. And they can't because the people inside of them are too afraid of conflict."

--Margaret Heffernan, Serial Entrepreneur and Author

Every other Tuesday, womenatliberty.com provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. This week's #LeadershipTuesdays feature is on the importance of having your own voice and having "your voice" heard and valued by the organization when it differs from the majority. Why is it important for an organization to value constructive conflict and those who may not always agree with an idea, policy, or a decision held by the majority? See the following quote from the Margaret Heffernan's TED Talk video:

"The fact is that most of the biggest catastrophes that we've witnessed rarely come from information that is secret or hidden. It comes from information that is freely available and out there, but that we are willfully blind to, because we can't handle, don't want to handle, the conflict that it provokes. But when we dare to break that silence, or when we dare to see, and we create conflict, we enable ourselves and the people around us to do our very best thinking."

There is a skill in learning how to disagree and harness the power in disagreements and constructive conflict to enhance relationships, discover new opportunities, and improve product/services and processes. A certain level of trust and respect must exist for both the organization and individuals within the organization in order for people to feel safe speaking up without fear of retribution. When these elements are not valued within the organization at every level, senior management as well as employees, we suffer events like the GM Ignition Switch Defect or the 1986 NASA Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster where precious lives are lost.

So what does it take to be able to appreciate constructive conflict? Check out Margaret Heffernan's Ted Talk by clicking here. You will enjoy the brief talk and be enlightened. For more information on #LeadershipTuesdays or womenatliberty.com, click here. 

#LeadershipTuesdays: Dare To Disagree...Margaret Heffernan

"Open information is fantastic, open networks are essential. But the truth won't set us free until we develop the skills and the habit and the talent and the moral courage to use it."

Margaret Heffernan, Serial Entrepreneur and CEO

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Today Leadership Tuesdays focuses on the importance of you having your own voice and having "your voice" heard and valued by the organization when your opinion differs from the majority. Why is it important for an organization to value constructive conflict and those who may not always agree with an idea, policy, or a decision held by the majority? In this inspiring and popular Ted Talk, Margaret Heffernan talks about how "good disagreement" is essential to progress and meaningful growth, both for individuals and the organization.

There is a skill in learning how to disagree and use disagreements and constructive conflict to enhance relationships, discover new opportunities, and improve product/services and processes. A certain level of trust and respect must exist for both the organization and individuals within the organization to speak up without fearing retribution. When these core values are within the organization, they help to prevent major problems and disasters. When these elements are not valued within the organization at every level, senior management as well as employees, we suffer events like the GM Ignition Switch Defect or the 1986 NASA Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster.

The best companies know how to value and harness conflict for the betterment of the company and its employees. People with good, fulfilling and long-lasting marriages have also learned this skill.

So what does it take to be able to appreciate constructive conflict? Check out Margaret Heffernan's Ted Talk by clicking here. You will definitely be enlightened. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays or WOMEN AT LIBERTY, click here. 

Does The End Justify The Means?...Albert Bandura

“Moral justification is a powerful disengagement mechanism. Destructive conduct is made personally and socially acceptable by portraying it in the service of moral ends.”

--Albert Bandura, Noted Psychologist and Author