Tonight we start a new GUTSY WOMEN WEEKEND. We are doing them every other month and they are making a difference for women who are in leadership positions or are emerging leaders.
So, what does that have to do with memories?
Nothing….. and everything.
You see most programs want to stay with present situations and move forward. We believe that we need to clear the past to free the present. In fact the word Sankofa means exactly that. It is a word from Ghana that is represented by a bird with its neck turned back to retrieve an egg.
Why an egg on a bird’s back you wonder?
It represents something that is still alive and vital that can be brought into the present and used in a positive way.
That leads to an amazing book I read as fast as I could, and dreamt about for weeks. “The Buddha in the Attic” by Julie Otsuka is a riveting novel about a group of young women who were the “picture brides” of young Japanese men who came to San Francisco to make their fortunes.
I promise you will be spellbound by the honesty, the power of women who had little say in their lives decades ago and how they searched for ways to grow and become GUTSY. These are the women who stood tall and impacted the next generation, and the next.
You may not be of Japanese descent, however, look back in your own lineage to find the memories and power of the women who came before and found the strength to overcome adversity.
Sylvia Lafair
Sylvia Lafair, PhD, is President of CEO – Creative Energy Options, Inc., a global consulting company focused on optimizing workplace relationships through her exclusive PatternAware™ Leadership Model. Dr. Lafair is the author of Don’t Bring It to Work: Breaking the Family Patterns That Limit Success published by Jossey-Bass. As an executive coach and leadership educator, she has more than 30 years of experience with all levels of management from leading corporate officers of global companies to executives of non-profits and owners of leading family-owned businesses. She is now offering GUTSY Women Weekends, giving women the opportunity to dialogue and clarify next steps.
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