Change

Leading for renewal: Achieving high performance in times of turbulence and change

The unseen role models that inspire women leaders

At 18-months old, my daughter is a playful, curious, vocal tot who loves to boldly crash her way around the kitchen with her walker, offers regular cuddles to her soft toys and with focused concentration builds her stickle brick structures.  She is (of course especially in my eyes), totally adorable with a winning smile, regularly told by everyone that she is cute, and validated for being clever.  However, I also notice the absence of words such as ‘bold’ or ‘brave’ that subtly add stereotypes on what a good girl is or is not.

I greatly want to protect her from the programming of gender, and equally know that I won’t be totally able to. But, I have a plan; to introduce her to the many amazing role models and female super heroes who give her a map to develop her potential without false limitations.

Are you wilfully blind to your own life?

In her fabulous book, Willful Blindness, Margaret Heffernan says “we choose, sometimes consciously but mostly not, to remain unseeing in situations where we could know, and should know, but don’t know because it makes us feel better not to know.”

My own wilful blindness showed up in my late 40’s when, on the receiving end of coaching questions, I realised I had been overly investing time, energy and attention in my business at the expense of the other aspects of my life.

Avoiding wilful blindness is not for the faint hearted.  The busyness of everyday life with widely dispersed families, financial pressures, and ever-present technology means that few of us have the time or courage to shine a light into the blind-spots of our lives by reflecting on questions such as “who am I?”, “why do I do what I do?” and “what do I want to achieve in this world?”