It has been an honor to celebrate all of the amazing women in my circle throughout March! I decided I wanted to take on a creative project for Women’s History Month shortly after I started my blog. I couldn't wait till March came around so I could make it a reality. Now that the project is almost two weeks behind me, I'd like to share some reflections from Inspiring Women: Celebrating Women In My Circle.
1. The women in my life are so dang amazing! Each woman I highlighted send me a short bio along with her answers to the three prompts and, without fail, everyone included something in their bios or responses that I didn’t know about them. Further reminders of how awesome the ladies around me are!
2. This project had me missing people, places, and hairstyles! While writing about folks that have been such a big part of my history, I couldn't help but get caught up in so many amazing memories! Travel. . .college. . .grad school. . .too many great times in my life. Also, it got me thinking about hairstyles. There are some hair changes on the horizon!
3. Writing a piece a day for the month was a lot of work. I am so, so glad I did - but a blog post a day is quite an undertaking. . . especially with my current work/life load. If any of y'all were paying close attention you may have noticed how, at the beginning of the month, I had the daily post out by 9AM. And, by the end of the month, I was so behind that I put 4 out in one day. (Please note that any delay in people's posts was a direct result of my business/procrastination/etc. and not at all a reflection on them!) Related to time and making enough time for my passions, in particular, y'all will have to stay tuned because I have some very exciting information that I'll be sharing publicly soon.
4. I need to work on my blog format. Because I now have 30+ blog posts on a similar topic, I realize that I need to find a better way to let readers search through categories. Currently, there’s no proper way to search my blog posts. So, if you look now, it’s all bios and it’s difficult to access my previous content. This is just giving me the push I need to do some work with my blog and, perhaps, change the Squarespace theme. (Changes to come!!)
5. I couldn’t help but think about each person’s Top 5 Strengths! Through my work coaching and teaching, I engage quite a bit with StrengthsQuest. Essentially, SQ is a inventory, through Gallup, that identifies one's “Top 5” themes of talent or, strengths. I have done a wide variety of personality assessments and this is, by far, my favorite! The more I work with it, the more I feel its accuracy and impact.
As I was writing each piece, I caught myself wondering the strengths of my friends. Some folks, especially those working in Student Affairs, have done this assessment so I know their strengths but I couldn't help wondering about others. As I take on Life Coaching in the upcoming months, I look forward to incorporating StengthsQuest into my sessions with women as they work to love themselves and achieve their goals.
6. This list of 31 women isn't exhaustive. There are many other important and inspirational ladies in my life – both those I know personally and some that I do not. This project is a reminder of how women around me have shaped my personal history. It brings me joy to share them and their amazing passions and inspirations with the world. As I grow my business, I want to make sure I am highlighting the talent and expertise from women around me in the same way.
7. Women supporting women. . . is everything. I’ve been using the hashtag #WomenSupportingWomen on Instagram for a while. This is a mantra and philosophy that has become something I believe in deeply and am constantly seeking to put into practice in my life. I have a lot to say about this. . .so much that I am going to save it for an upcoming blog post (or two).
Finally, THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Thank you to those who read along throughout the month! Thank you to the amazing folks who agreed to be part of this! Thanks oh-so-much to those of you who shared and helped pub this project! All of this means so much to me!
I don’t know how long I’ll keep the calendar up for – but it will certainly be a while. The images and collages of the women in this project are also on my Instagram. You can see them all using the hashtag #CelebratingWomenInMyCircle. Again, thanks so much for reading!