Finding Your Purpose and Leading Change
Advice from Women Who Lead
I’m president and CEO of a non-profit called Vital Voices. I think all of us in this room know, and have experienced, the power of a single day. A single moment, to shape the future.
Twenty years ago today, I was a 21-year-old college student. I was growing up in an interconnected world, and I was desperate to understand my place, as a woman, within that world. I heard about something called the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China. You know, that thing that people kind of did, and kind of didn’t, want Hillary Clinton to attend.
I decided I needed to be there, so I saved and I borrowed and I bought the cheapest ticket that I could find, one with, I think, four stopovers before I landed in Beijing, China. There, I was surrounded by nearly 50,000 women, leaders and advocates from around the world.
I realized, as I stood there: These women didn’t come to learn their place in the world; they came to fight for it.
I walked away from that experience wanting to fight for it myself, realizing that even though I had a small voice, I had a voice. And I had to use it to empower those who had no voice.
I’ve worked the past 20 years with women leaders around the world. I can tell you absolutely that women lead differently, and that difference, I believe, is precisely what our world needs. They’ve taught me a number of lessons. I don’t have time to tell you all of them today, but I’ll tell you three.
They’ve shown me that real leadership, real leaders — every morning they wake up motivated by making the world, and making people’s lives, better. If you’re not that way, you’re not a leader.
They’ve also shown me that the only way to accelerate progress is by taking risks, and not being afraid to fail, and understanding that failure isn’t the opposite of success. It’s actually a stepping stone closer to it.
And finally, they’ve shown me that the difference between good intentions and great leadership is the courage and commitment to stay the course, no matter how difficult the path.
I think these are lessons for all of us. I certainly try to live my life by them.
