Women in the LEAD

Becoming Whole

For some reason this week I’ve been thinking a great deal about the hero in the film “Whale Rider”.  She was a true hero in the sense that against many opinions and all odds, she rose to the top of the leadership of her tribe.  She innately held ancient wisdom and knowledge of the sea, her land and her people.  However, being a young girl from a highly patriarchal tribe, her talents and attributes were greatly discounted and dismissed.

Something inside of her – a feeling, an intuition – kept rising to the surface of her being, telling her – pursue your greatness, listen to your inner wisdom.  You are the leader for this time..  Against all odds, under cover, she learned the sacred ways of the tribe and never for one minute questioned the power of her gifts, wisdom and seership.  Towards the end of the film, she had an opportunity to provide leadership to the entire community through her devotion and dedication and knowledge of the great whale.  I won’t tell you more because the film is a must see – full of mysticism and learnings.  I encourage you to see it.  In the mean time, it brings up a few questions that it would be useful for all of us to answer:

Where in your life must you now shine, lead or come forth?

Where in your life are you holding yourself back from allowing these great gifts to come forth? 

What is your intuition telling you?

What more can you be in the world today?

Maureen Simon

Women: The time is now… are you ready???

There has not been a time in modern history on a cross-cultural and global basis where men and women have stood side by side providing leadership that equally respects and acknowledges both masculine and feminine attributes. The good news is that the time has come. The question is: are you ready to be apart of this new awakening?

Over the past year I have been noticing the amazing gifts that women hold but often keep modestly to themselves. Recently, I have been thinking about how different the world would be if women spoke up. Would world hunger be as rampant? Would the children be fed? Would we be engaged globally in so many wars, or would women look to find other ways to find equity and peace? How would we treat the environment—the children’s playground and land of their future?

Over the past few years numerous business studies have documented how women’s attributes are making major contributions to the bottom line is business. Among the best known is the Catalyst study, which was completed in 2004 and surveyed Fortune 500 companies over a five year period between 1995 -2000. The study indicated that companies that had women in top leadership positions showed a 34% increase in profit to shareholders.

Why might that be? Some reasons may be that:

• Women have tendency towards relational leadership their work is often inclusive and involves the opinion, ideas and thoughts of others.

• Women have a tendency towards “web thinking”- the ability to see the whole. Studies have shown that if women enter a room and are asked to look around and then leave the room, she will then, when asked to report back her observations report from the perspective of having a “whole sense” for what is in the room.

• Men’s reports are often focused on a specific area of the room. Many have deduced that women lead in a more holistic manner.

• Women have a tendency to want to share power and work with more; consensus,   consultation and collaboration.

More good news…women are beginning to step forth more and more in the world of politics and business. Two good examples are the high ratio of women in the Indian Parliament and very recent news from a 'The New York Times' article that informed us that women make up 48% of the representatives in the current Parliament of Rwanda, a place where the voice of women is strongly needed. We are also now witnessing more and more  women in  prominent positions  within incorporations but, it would still be difficult to say that the voice of women is now loudly, clearly and authentically being heard across the globe.

In order for a strong balance between the voices of men and women in leadership to become common place, women must now choose to make greater leadership contribution across these arenas by leveraging the innate feminine attributes that they have for so long set aside in order to adapt to the masculine culture that defines our world today.  Taking into consideration my work with hundreds of women as well as the current state of the world, I am convinced that this greater contribution will provide the kind of powerful shift necessary for the healing and subsequent positive forward movement of the world.

So ladies, what contribution do you want to make? Are you ready? Change begins one small step at a time. We live in a time of great opportunity. Go for it!!!!!

Maureen Simon

The Fire That Bakes Us To Perfection

“Work is the very fire where we are baked to perfection, and like the master of the fire itself, we add the essential ingredient and fulfillment when we walk into the flames ourselves.”

David Whyte

Walking into the flames takes courage and means something very different to each one of us. It takes courage to find the right expression of our gifts in the world or to speak up for what we believe to be true in challenging situations. It is in the moments that we speak up and fully express ourselves in our work that we find our true authenticity. A feeling of light heartedness and peace sets into our being. Once we get a taste of this fabulous feeling it becomes impossible to go back to the smallness of being silent when we know we should speak or to working in situations that do not truly reflect our beliefs or who we really are.

Try speaking up when you really believe you must.

Try exploring from with in –what you are really here on this earth to contribute.

Who knows you may never be able to turn back?

Maureen Simon

The Good & Bad Of Life

“If you pretend to be good, the world takes you very seriously.  If you pretend to be bad, it doesn’t.  Such is the astounding stupidity of optimism.”

Lady Windemere’s Fan – Oscar Wilde

There’s nothing better than reading Oscar Wilde for a good dose of reality.  We live in a world of illusion.  Oscar Wilde’s humor comes so naturally from his inner core of cynicism.  What does his statement mean to you?

Maureen Simon

Simplifying Life

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.  Live the life you’ve imagined.  As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler, solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, weakness not weakness.”

Henry David Thoreau

How do we simplify our lives as we go confidently in the direction of our dreams?  In some ways Henry David Thoreau sounds like a contradiction, but I am more and more convinced that that is because many of us are hard wired to live complex lives.  I, myself, am looking at ways to simplify life.

What makes days, projects and dreams more complex than they need to be?

How can we simplify our lives as we confidently move toward our dreams?

Where do the complications lie?

Simplicity is an art.  Life has become fast and, for many, challenging.  Look for ways that you can create a deeply meaningful life that reflects your dreams and is full of simplicity.  The challenge lies before many of us.

Maureen Simon

What Do You Really Value? What Really Lights your Fire?

Each of us has the ability to make a huge difference in the direction that the world is now moving in! As my favorite Irish poet John O’ Donohue has written in Anam Cara:

“… There is a unique destiny for each person. Each one of has something to do here that can be done by no one else. If someone else could fulfill your destiny then they would be in your place and you would not be here…”

Having grown up in an Irish family and community… I must admit I do love the directness of the Irish. John’s statement is direct and fairly opinionated but opens many questions in my own mind. I have always interpreted Johns words to mean that we are each unique and each hold an important part of the whole.  It has strongly led me to believe that the world needs our unique offering. This quote often guides me to look more deeply at what I value and to look more closely at what really lights my fire. Moving into the New Year I have been asking myself:

• What issues or causes on the planet do I feel most strongly about?
• What is my unique destiny?
• What are my greatest gifts, strengths and talents and where can they make the most contribution?
• Where do I experience the most joy and satisfaction?
• What do I want more of in my life (of the things that I most value)?

It is clear to me that part of the art of alive and dynamic living is staying “awake at the wheel”. What do you really value and what questions do you need to ask yourself right now?

Maureen Simon