Bringing Love to Logistics & Caring for Our Team So Women Can Rise
What is something that always makes you feel confident?
There is something to be said about getting older and accumulating experience. I feel confident speaking from experience and talking about something that I know makes me feel confident because I lived it, or because I’ve seen it happen. I like theory, but experience has a different flavor to it. For example, one of the great advantages of being a part of every Leap to Confidence® class over the past five years, is that I got to see the tools and the growth in every single class. I got to see the transformation, which means I’ve learned a lot from seeing participants grow, from using and practicing our tools. And I can see my own personal growth, which allows me to speak from experience. So, when I’m mentoring new team members, I can talk about that experience, and how I dealt with certain things, versus giving random advice.
What does empowerment look like to you in everyday life?
Empowerment, to me, is feeling safe to be who you are–showing up how you want to show up, or how you can show up at the time. It means being authentic and not feeling like you need to do or be something different in order to feel safe. For example, when you feel safe, you can speak for yourself, you can speak your thoughts, and you can act from your truth, and not from fear.
Who is a woman who has inspired you?
I am going to be classic and go with my mom. Mom always told me and my siblings, “If you do what you love, the money is going to come, and everything is going to work out.” That (and a few other things) defined who we are today. My mom is an illustrator. She illustrates books for kids, which is not necessarily something that brings in a steady paycheck every month. But she made it work because she stood up for herself and what she loved. Her example allowed me and my brothers to see what was possible. I will admit, it was really hard when I was a teenager, but today, I am truly grateful for her example.
I’m also very lucky! My mom always demonstrates to me and my siblings how much she loves us. Love is unconditional, and she always shows us enough. We didn’t have to seek love in unhealthy ways. And we knew love, so we knew when we were not receiving it. So, I know what a gift it is to be loved. That really changed my ability to feel safe, and to be who I wanted to be. I am really proud of myself. I’m really proud of my siblings.
What part of our mission resonates with you the most?
I come from a very strong line of women, so for me to be able to support other women is the most important thing for me at this time. Being a woman, from a strong matriarchal family, we know what the challenges are. There are very specific challenges to being a woman, different from other people’s challenges, and being able to support women in that way is really meaningful to me.
What motivates you to get out of bed in the morning and support the women in our community?
I have a very specific job within the organization. Even though I have been part of all of the Leap to Confidence® classes, I’m not the direct connection to the organizations and the tools for the women we work with. So, for me, I have a really different lens when taking care of the staff and the processes so that the end result is better. I want us, as an organization, to be as healthy and as efficient as possible so that our impact keeps getting better and better. I’m an advocate for the women we serve, only my focus is on improving our processes. Freeing up time and energy for the whole staff really excites me. Making our lives easier so that we can use our energy to do better for our participants gets me super excited!
If you could have lunch with anyone, living or dead, who would it be, and why?
I would love to have lunch with my grandma, not just because she passed away. Of course, I miss her, but I feel like now that I’m an adult, I could have a different conversation with her than when I was a kid. I know she lived through a lot, and I know she had a lot of learnings that I will never have. As a grandma, she was not going to share the hard things that happened in her life with me when I was a teenager. I really wish I had the opportunity to have those harder conversations now. I would ask her, What is your story? What brought you here? Why did you choose this or that? I’ve heard a lot about her story, but I don’t know it from her perspective. She never allowed herself to be weak, in front of us and in that way, so I know her stories through my mom, or other people, but I don’t know them through her, and I really wish I did. I would love it!
