Women are expanding into Leadership roles at a rapid pace. For those desiring to create a bigger impact while growing their wealth, harnessing the qualities of lasting influence is essential.
Michelle Obama is one of the greatest Female Leaders of our time. An attorney, author, and the first African American first lady, serving from 2009 to 2017. She has captivated the hearts of women and young girls from all over the world with her wisdom, empathy, and relatability. Obama’s work is far-reaching, impacting diverse communities and initiating meaningful change across a range of causes, such as ending childhood obesity, and supporting military families.
According to Obama: “Success isn’t about how much money you make. It’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.”
So how do you harness the attributes of strong leadership while making a lasting impact on people’s lives?
Have a Mission That Moves You
Harnessing the dedication and devotion to a cause greater than yourself is what every authentic Leader must embody. During her 8 years in Washington, Obama was devoted to effecting positive change in the areas of racism, women’s rights, and public health. Even on the hardest of days, the commitment to her mission saw her take action and in doing so, deposit value every day into the Movement of women ‘Becoming’ empowered and connected.
Yamilca Rodriguez is best known as a former Brand Leader at Procter & Gamble Company. For decades, she has been helping brands and individuals create unforgettable brand experiences. In her recent TedX speech, she brought awareness to the power that ‘we the people’ have when empathy is embodied in the pursuit of one’s mission. It is a skill that creates relatability when sharing your work. It brings people together and becomes the glue between a Mission and a Movement. She shares: “empathy is taught and at the highest levels of leadership, new empathic skills must be learned in order to connect with people on a deeper level”.
Audit Your Listening
A fundamental attribute of a strong leader resides in the ability to listen. Being an exceptional listener allows for innovation, through knowing what your community needs from you. It takes courage to refrain from speaking while trusting that in doing so, you can be the loudest person in the room. Knowing when to be silent, when to speak, and what to say, is a skill in itself. It’s a level of leadership that’s in high demand, heading into 2022.
Kathi Tait is best known as the Baldwarrior, spreading awareness of Alopecia and fighting social norms. Her work is rooted in self-empowerment and plays a pivotal role in the world of Mental Health in Australia. Tait says: “A great leader exhibits self-aware behavior and empowers others to be the best version of themselves through their creativity, innovation, and ethics and that only happens with powerful listening skills.”
Build your listening skills by first tuning in and hearing yourself. Bare witness to what you need and practice taking action consistently to elevate your reality. When you can lead yourself, you can lead others in a more profound way.
Build a Village
Women in leadership recognize the unequivocal impact of having a Team and building influence with a ‘Village Mindset’. Recognizing that the path to becoming a Leader is no longer one that is walked alone, takes courage. It breaks old paradigms and challenges what most women were raised to believe.
Isabel Donadio-Fagan is the Founder of Talent Support Services, LLC, DBA Top Talent Agency, and multiple Best Selling Author, who specializes in content creation, authority marketing, and talent management. Through managing and guiding her large team at Top Talent Agency, she has learned how critical her Team is in producing results.
Isabel echo’s Obama in the importance of desiring to make a lasting impact on people’s lives, and says: “Listening and becoming fascinated with the stories of people’s lives – what led them to where they are now, is so fundamental if you want to make a real difference. And when it’s time to speak, be sure that it serves a purpose and is worth hearing. Lastly, if you become an entrepreneur only for the money, then you are missing out on the endless day-to-day adventure that awaits you and your people.”
In Closing
Obama, as one of the most progressive leaders of our time, inspiring women and young girls all over the globe, has left a lasting impact through unequivocally embodying her work, and having the courage to take a stand for it. And as Brene Brown says: “A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for finding the potential in people and processes, and who has the courage to develop that potential.”
Courageous women are rising, and now more than ever, it’s exactly what this world needs.
