The power of thank you

International Women’s Day is one of my favourite days of the year.

It’s a day that gives me an excuse to celebrate the amazing difference that women make in the world.

Over the last few years Positive Impact has been running a campaign called Girls Creating. Inspired by the United Nations Women data that by the time girls are 7 they decide on what they are capable of and the fact that the global events industry is predominantly female, this campaign encourages people to acknowledge a woman that has made a difference. Imagine if the global event industry was recognised as an industry where women could excel in their leadership capacity (I hope future generations read that sentence and think “Isn’t that obvious”). Imagine if 7 year old girls around the world understood the impactful role of events in the world and imagined themselves as event professionals facilitating connection between the change makers of the future.

In my career there are so many women who have made a difference to me and over the past 12 months I’ve been using the Girls Creating campaign to say thank you to them. I’ve had the opportunity to interview a few of them too and their podcasts are launched on the Positive Impact website to mark International Women’s Day.

Also launching today is my own website, which for years I have been thinking I should do but its always seemed too…egotistical. Ah and that is a real life example of being a female leader - it occurs to me as wrong to shout ‘hey I know some good stuff’. Instead I’ve been procrastinating creating this (for years!), timid about sharing it (notice this is not the opener to my blog) and every time I use social media to promote it in the future I’m anticipating feeling nervous and uncomfortable. However I’m getting increasingly comfortable with being uncomfortable as I continue to speak up about the creation of a sustainable event industry, the power of events and now the opportunity to create your life in a way that works for you. Who knows what will happen tomorrow but today is a chance to celebrate being a woman, making a difference and all the wonderful women on the journey with me. Happy International Women’s Day.