International Women’s Day means so much to me this year for a number of reasons:
1. It’s snuggled in the month of March.
That’s my birthday month: March 13th. This year I’ll be celebrating it on my first cruise, sailing to the Bahamas, alongside my mother whom I not long ago emotionally reconnected with. Exciting, right?
Just as exciting…March is also the birth month of my brainchild, So Fundamental. In fact, we share a birthday. Two years ago, on my 24th birthday, I decided to go for it. I went into not knowing what would happen. Would I trip over my own ideas, land flat on my face, and be ridiculed. Or, would I become a from-the-bottom-now-I’m-here testimony? I didn’t know, but I had to see. I had to.
2. I’m celebrating the fact that I’m a full-time entrepreneur now.
…The fact that I had the choice to go corporate or go solo; the fact that I had the courage to choose me; the fact that I have a husband who supports that; the fact that I have a circle of the most amazing women that you’d ever want to meet; the fact that I had the honor of interviewing eight of them last month.
And one thing that I’ve learned thus far about being an entrepreneur is that it calls for a lot of decisions to be made from the gut. Exploring practices such as meditation which strengthen the signal of your intuition is important. Because for the most part, your intuition is the only GPS you have. The easiest/hardest part is trusting its instruction.
Sometimes I’m really good at this. Other times, not so much. I don’t beat myself up about it though, and since those two years ago that I birthed my business, the opportunities that it has gifted me call for three moments of silence.
3. I’ve grown tremendously since my last blog on International Women’s Day.
And that was just last year. I got my passport stamped for the first time. I made amazing partnerships. I published another book. Broke my own records. Put my book into the hands of some amazing writers like Nikki Giovanni and Pearl Cleage. And did I mention that I quit my job to spend more of time pursuing my own passions? I created and dedicated an entire Pinterest board to keep track of the miracles that I witness and experience throughout the year.
4. I’ve witnessed so many women’s dreams come true.
Especially the literary ones. Those really get to me. Like, some women published books, some started writing books that they’ve had tucked away for years, some launched blogs, a few are finalists in major writing contests, and others have expanded their portfolios into areas such as publishing, speaking, and coaching. And let’s see…
- My girlfriend landed her first radio show.
- Another opened the doors to her own beauty salon.
- Lupita Nyong’o forever changed the game.
- Beyoncé dropped an album that shook the industry and made herstory.
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wrote words that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
- Tamron Hall added some color to the Today Show.
- Sasheer Zamata graced Saturday Night Live.
- Lauryn Williams blessed the Olympics.
- And you…
What are some of your highlights since last year’s International Women’s Day?