Are you an aggressive female with dreams, and will not take no for an answer? Would you rather speak your mind than go quietly into the night? If so you may be a Scrappy Woman. The other day I had the privilege of connecting with Kimberly Wiefling, President of Wiefling Consulting and Founder of ScrappyWomen.biz . Kimberly is a woman who speaks her mind and would rather … [Read more...]
Time For Women to Compete
Seventy years have passed since women left the confines of being homemakers and joined the work force en mass. Today, in 2012, there are only 12 Fortune 500 companies are led by women CEO's. Perhaps it is time for another surge, time for women to take things to the next level by doing something that comes naturally to our male counterparts - compete. That is right Ladies. … [Read more...]
Wage Gap Costs Women 92 Weeks of Food, 13 Months of Rent, and Nearly 3,000 Gallons of Gas
Don't believe that the gender wage gap exists? Don't believe it really matters? New statistics provide some startling proof and perspective. Today is Equal Pay Day, so let's take a look at some statistics that really put the gender wage gap into perspective from a recent report by the National Partnership for Women & Wage Families. Nationally, women are paid 77 cents … [Read more...]
Strong Women in the Front Row
Telling a group of men to “show up and be accountable” is new territory for most women. We have been in back of or on the side of our men for eons. Not that we have to be loud and bossy to get our way. We just have to be clear. Margaret Thatcher, portrayed by Meryl Streep in the film The Iron Lady, was a woman of depth and conviction. Strong in an arena that few women … [Read more...]
Women, Leadership, Self-Care, and BLUE MONDAY
You wake up Monday morning, pour yourself a glass of orange juice, and get breakfast ready for your clan. Off to the office, you battle the traffic, thinking about how to tell your rebel employee that there have been complaints about his behavior. You dread the meeting and yet know it can’t wait. Pulling into the parking lot you feel a wave of frustration, seeing that … [Read more...]
When Being GUTSY Starts Young
I recently spoke at a women’s networking group and asked the bright and creative professionals to think about the earliest time they could remember when they spoke out for themselves. To jog their memories, I told a story about unfairness when a boy in my elementary school class was yelled at when I was the one “sneaking” in front of him in line. (You can read the whole … [Read more...]
What Do Women Want?
It’s really simple. What women want is to be heard! We do not need to have the problems solved for us. However, before we can make change happen we require dialogue, discussion, debate. In my book “GUTSY: How Women Leaders Make Change”, I did some digging to consider basic things that have been handed to us that have become part of who we are, part of our culture. I … [Read more...]
Women and Responsibility
Times, they are a changing, always. However, changing times seem to happen in the blink of an eye. I do believe we women leaders need to stop and take a deep look at what we are doing and the profound consequences of our actions. In days of yore, we were to be kept “barefoot and pregnant” and now we have “freedom of choice”. The big question is, what are we choosing and … [Read more...]
Women, Food, and Being GUTSY
This is the perfect time of year, when food is front and center in our minds, to honor a woman who has been in the food services industry for several decades. Yet, it’s not about her relationship with food that we’ll discuss; it’s about her relationship with women. Victoria Vega is the National Director of Business Development, Corporate Dining for CulinArt Managed Dining … [Read more...]
A Gutsy Woman Leader Occupies Wall Street
There she was, tufts of purple hair framing her face as she stood daring the policeman to arrest her. “What if I punch you in the eye?” she queried. “What if I knee’ d you in the groin?” she challenged. She was told she would not be arrested if she stayed with the protestors and that made the day much brighter. Think about it. What do you do when you feel the passion … [Read more...]