Focus, Focus On The Good...Nikki Rowe

"The world is broken he said, how will you fix it?

I don't think anyone can fix it but we can teach ourselves & each other to focus on the good and the important and maybe little by little this place won't feel so heavy."

--Nikki Rowe

Being Black In America

“I think the experience of being black in America creates resilience—a steady steadiness. And it creates courage and pride. Not pride in a boastful way, but being proud, as you need to be in moments when you feel completely rejected, completely ignored, overlooked, sidelined.”


—A senior executive of a Fortune 50 financial services firm

Quote taken from "Beating the Odds" by Laura Morgan Roberts, Anthony J. Mayo, Robin J. Ely, & David A. Thomas, Harvard Business Review, March-April, 2018

#LeadershipTuesdays: I Can...Wilma Rudolph

"When the sun is shining I can do anything; no mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome."

Wilma Rudolph (1940-1994), US Olympic-winning Athlete

"My doctors told me I would never walk again. My
mother told me I would. I believed my mother."
--Wilma Rudolph

Every other Tuesday, @womenatliberty provides a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Wilma Rudolph was a gold medal-winning athlete for the United States in Track and Field. In the 1960's she was considered the fastest woman in the world. But, if you know her story, you know that she overcame great odds to become one of the greatest athletes of all times.

Wilma Rudolph was born prematurely and at the age of four she contracted polio which left her paralyzed for a time. She eventually walked on her own, but she had to wear a brace. In her tween years, she shed her brace and became active in basketball and track. Defying the early prognosis of her doctors, Wilma Rudolph became a world class athlete in Track and Field winning a bronze medal for the 4x100 relay in 1956 and two gold medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter dash in the 1960 Olympics. As the quote above reflects, Wilma believed she could do anything; her mother, family and coach also believed that she could do anything. Her belief and their support took her to greatness.

Today's Leadership Tuesdays' article, "How The Impostor Syndrome Helps You Find Your True Self" by J. Clara Chan, is about how women specifically deal with self-doubt and how they differ in how they perceive their abilities when they are successful versus how men perceive their own abilities under the same circumstances. Everyone at one time or another deals with that familiar "negative voice" in their head that leads to self-doubt. I'm sure Wilma Rudolph, given her early childhood health challenges, also had to deal with that voice. However she did not believe or give in to that voice. The author of the article says that a healthy amount of self-doubt can lead you to "work harder, learn more, and ultimately become better at the task or skill at hand". And that's what Wilma Rudolph did.

And frankly, that's what we all must do. Speak to that negative voice in your head just like it is speaking to you and say what Wilma Rudolph said, "I can do anything!"

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

To learn more about Wilma Rudolph and view a short video on her life, go to: http://www.biography.com/people/wilma-rudolph-9466552

Nona O.
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Meeting Difficulties...Phyllis Bottome

"There are two ways of meeting difficulties: You alter the difficulties or you alter yourself meeting them." 

--Phyllis Bottome

#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

Becoming A Better You...Jaha Knight

“When you set a goal, you have a responsibility to yourself to see it through. No matter how impossible it may seem, resolve to accomplish it.”

--Jaha Knight, 30 Day Lifescape-Becoming A Better You

Image Credit: http://blogs.jabil.com/jabiljoules/five-steps-to-accomplishing-your-goals

Show What You Are Made Of...Jill Abramson

"And now I’m talking to anyone who’s been dumped! You bet! Not gotten the job you really wanted or received those horrible rejection letters from grad school. You know the sting of losing or not getting something you badly want. When that happens, show what you are made of. 

…it was the honor of my life to lead the newsroom."

--Jill Abramson, Executive Editor of the New York Times (2011 – 2014)

*You are invited to join WOMEN AT LIBERTY for a Twitter Chat Friday, 5/23, 3-4 pm to discuss girls and women succeeding leadership. #WWYD2H (What Would You Do To Help) We will also discuss why the Nigerian girls becoming "smartgirls" made them such a threat to terrorists in Nigeria.

Begin Again In A New Way...Happy New Year!

Ends are not bad things, they just mean that something else is about to begin. And there are many things that don't really end, anyway, they just begin again in a new way.

--Unknown

Be Authentic!...@vnona

Someone needs your wisdom. They are crossing a bridge you already crossed.  They need to hear your story of how you were sad one moment, courageous the next, tired but kept going, took a break and started to live again. Your words may make the difference and cause someone to try again.

--Nona

Picture Source: http://marketingdr.blogspot.com/2013/10/weoften-hear-or-read-personal-branding.html

You Can Rise...Angelique Kidjo!!

“You can fall, but you can rise also.” 

-- Angelique Kidjo

We Are Resilient...Bern Williams

"Man never made any material as resilient as the human spirit."  --Bern Williams

Haiti Earthquake, January 2010

Courage Doesn't Always Roar...Mary Anne Radmacher

Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow. ~Mary Anne Radmacher

http://maryanneradmacher.net/

Stay In The Game...Nona

Although you missed the last pass, resilient players keep running the pattern and looking for the pass.  That's the only way you can make a difference in the game. You can't be apart of a key play sitting on the sideline.  Don't give up! Keep yourself in the game.

The Sun Will Shine Again*...Nona

Sometimes storms can unleashed such a fury in our lives and it may rain everyday for days. But we hold on because we know that it can not rain always. The sun will shine again. --Nona

*To hear an original song entitled, "The Sun Will Shine Again", by Nona & Friends featuring Nova Nelson Tate, click here. You may also click on the player on the right of this page.

Our Potential Is Limitless...Christopher Reeve

We can either watch life from the sidelines, or actively participate...Either we let self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy prevent us from realizing our potential, or embrace the fact that when we turn our attention away from ourselves, our potential is limitless.  --Christopher Reeve (1952 - 2004) 

Resilience Is...Valorie Burton

Resilience is not about looking perfect or maintaining a flawlessly upbeat attitude as you navigate your way out of a ditch and onto a new path.  What matters is that you climb out of that ditch, even if you occasionally stumble on your way up.  

--Valorie Burton, Author, "Where Will You Go from Here?"

http://www.valorieburton.com/