Today, women remain woefully underrepresented in positions of leadership, authority, and power. With the MeToo movement, we are once again reminded that rape, sexual harassment, physical abuse, and sexual abuse happen to women from all walks of life, the rich and the poor, the weak and the powerful, the young and the old.

The external and systemic reasons for this are not insignificant and are not to be minimized. However, that isn’t the whole story.

An important and often overlooked aspect of women’s empowerment lies within each woman.  On an individual level, we can’t change the system.  But and this is a very big “but”, we can change our internal landscape regarding how we show up for our lives, both at work and at home.

We can stop hiding in the shadows, minimizing the value of our contributions, and letting others take the credit for our work. We can refuse to accept abuse and mistreatment as being par for the course or the price of admission.

When we feel unempowered we

• accentuate our self-perceived flaws, inadequacies, and focus on past “mistakes”
• negatively compare ourselves to others and assume others know better than we do
• wait for something external to us to change, “maybe this time, he/she won’t…”
• defer to others, rather than speaking our truth and sharing our expertise
• avoid talking about our accomplishments, successes, and achievements
• stay in situations and relationships even when we don’t feel safe, valued, or appreciated

Empowerment is an inside job

When we approach empowerment from this angle, there is a clear path to self-empowerment. Learning that we don’t have to rely on anything or anyone else to empower ourselves is a life-altering revelation.  Challenging our deep-seated beliefs about empowerment helps us take the courageous steps of taking up space, stepping into our power, and using our voices.

This presentation is valuable for women from all walks of life and of all ages.   The audience for this presentation will learn

• The psychology of empowerment
• To identify the internal beliefs that are holding them back
• To take ownership of their empowerment
• About actions and inactions, they inadvertently send that signal weakness or passivity
• The difference between empowerment and dominating or controlling someone else
• To use empowered communication strategies, that will promote inner confidence
• To set healthy boundaries

This powerful and inspiring presentation can be tailored-made for your event, whether your organization wants a shorter noontime talk, a keynote presentation of up to 60 minutes, or a more interactive, experiential half day, full day, or multiple day workshop, off-site meeting, or retreat.