What I Learned From Being In The Room

There I was, in the room. This was a big deal for me ! I was in the room with 5000 sisters, and a few courageous men. The room was a beautiful reflection of sisterhood diversity from around the world. It was a coming together of intention and ideas to mitigate the gender disaparity that still exists. I arrived at 7:00am to wait in line. Security was tight. I don’t wait in line anymore. I don’t get up early to wait in line. For this, I was eager to.

This was the first United State of Women Summit hosted by the White House. Invitation was by nomination only. I nominated myself. Who better to articulate my passion of serving women who are not done making a difference, then me? Within a few days, I got the news. I was honored and proud to represent my demographic.

In addition to the one day summit, I participated in two addtional solution events. One event hosted by the Small Business Administraton (SBA) focused on women and entrepreneurship, and the other event hosted by the National Academy of Sciences focused on economic transformation through bias mitigation. Both of these events provided the opportunity to truly connect with each other to create opportunities for growth and impact.

Everyone was happy (so early in the morning too!). Everyone was open, welcoming and excited. We were there to support each other, to make new friends, to uncover new opportunities, and to ultimately see the possbilities in our collective future.

The main event stage as well as the break out sessions was a who’s who of people from industry, government, education, non-profit, media and entertainment; including President Obama, Vice President Biden, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, First Lady Michelle Obama, Warren Buffet, Cecile Richards, Gloria Steinem, Billy Jean King, Lilly Ledbetter, Oprah, and many many others. Here is the full list of speakers: http://www.theunitedstateofwomen.org/summit-details/

Carol Gstalder, SVP of Professional Services from Nielsen’s set the stage for the summit with important research findings.  Gstalder remarked, “The nation has come a long way in improving the lives of American women and girls since 1971, yet the data indicate the nation is not done yet. The consensus is that women have the power to change their lives, the workforce, their communities and the world. To that end, a majority agree that there are important roles for business, non-profits, government, educators, the media and other public stakeholders to collaborate to make a difference.”

For me, this slide from her presentation says it all. The change must begin with each one of us:

The day was very emotional. I was moved to tears many times throughout the day (good thing I carry tissues). Here are some examples:

• When a young girl, Meghan Yap spoke bravely about her rape experience.
• When Vice President Joe Biden spoke passionately about his commitment to ending violence against women and gender equality: “There’s not a single solitary thing that a man can do that woman can’t as well. I mean that in the literal sense. Every single solitary thing a man can do a woman can do as well.”
• When Sonia Vallabh and Eric Minikel of The Broad Institute talked about quitting their jobs and re-educating themselves to find a cure for her fatal degenerative disease.
• When Jaha Dukureh, Founder and CEO of Safe Hands for Girls, shared her powerful personal story of her female genital mutilation (FGM) and her fight to end it once and for all: “Until the education of a girl is a right and not a privilege, we are failing our women.”
• When 11 year old Mikaila Ulmer, a successful social entrpreneur introduced the president.
• When the president spoke about change for women and girls, and said to the audience ‘This is what a feminist looks like!” The crowd erupted.

The day was filled with  insights, new relationships, and a lot of coffee.

So what did I learn?

• I learned that whatever your age, circumstance, religious preference, gender identity or profession, you have what it takes to be a successful human being.
• I learned that I am not too old, and to stop saying ‘I’m too old for that.’
• It is better to collaborate with other women then compete with each other. We will accomplish so much more when we lift each other.
• Build alliances with male colleagues and associates. We can and should not do this alone.
• Stand up, speak up and advocate for equality, fairness and justice. It is the right thing to do.
• Gender inequality is a global issue that we all need to continue to work to mitigate including equal access to healthcare and education, equal pay for equal work, workplace flexibility and benefits, increasing women on boards  and executive leadership roles, and stopping violence against women and girls.
• Don’t give up.
• Take risks.
• Build gender equality inside the organization and let society catch up.
• Continue to look for ways to build your own confidence, and always be your authentic self.
• Don’t wait for someone else to do it, you do it!