I recently turned 60. Like many birthdays before this one, I found myself reflecting on the journey of life.
Often when we are younger we can't get out of our comfort zone to stretch to something new. Missed opportunities leave us asking later in life; why did I wait?
My journey as an entrepreneur has provided me with an opportunity to meet some amazing women. Among my network are leaders in their industry & community.
My connections are filled with women that I've served with as a volunteer or as a partner in business. Like a string of pearls, one strong thread is required to hold each bead together. The thread that binds me to these women is trust & a willingness to share their life's journey. They rarely hesitate, instead they dive into life.
What exactly do I mean?
It's one thing to craft a statement before meeting with the press or posting a blog. However, it's a different type of transparency when you share your unrehearsed and unedited thoughts when you're asked a question. What if your voice does not match the others in the room for tone, cadence, or content? A different type of trust & communication results from not shying away from difficult conversations. One does not have to have the same perspective to share in order to learn & grow from one another. In fact, it's our differences that help us see the world more clearly.
One does not age without realizing that life has hurdles, setbacks, and challenges. We either move past our fears or hesitate too long, missing out on the next chapter. I've always been an open book- meaning ask, and I will answer. A willingness to share also comes from a lifetime of volunteering & teaching. In both worlds, as a volunteer or a teacher, it's necessary to connect to others in a personal way. Developing trust comes from sharing personal stories. Those stories make the next steps easier to climb. Also, being raised by parents from a small rural area created a sense of independence from boundaries; which helped. Have you heard it said, "You can take the person out of the country, but not the country out of the person?" Which roughly translates to describing individuals without a sense of social constraint. Instead, those individuals were raised to believe they could do anything, say anything, or ask anything; there's a bit of power in not knowing life has unwritten rules.
Does openness have its pitfalls? You bet.
An unfortunate truth in not hesitating to share is the unforeseen negatives. Like what?
Being judged by a moment or statement without knowing the person. When we know someone's personal backstory, it's easier to understand their motivations. Without personal knowledge, we often unfairly judge.
Seeing individuals advance on a ladder because we don't know how they feel about anything; so everyone loves them.
Individuals who simply read, watch, and copy what they perceive to be the formula for success rather than carving out their own path. An open book provides the pages & the plan. It breeds competitive environments unnecessarily.
Today's post is not about negatives- only positives. Our pearl series is about lifting each other up and a willingness to share the pearls in our thread. Through those pearls of wisdom, we will create new beads to add to our thread.
For several weeks now Emily, our summer intern turned continuing team member, has been on a journey of exploration with me. We filmed content that will be converted to reels. We gathered stories that will be expanded into the blog posts in an effort to connect you to pearls of wisdom. Each post will have a little me, a little Emily, and all the wisdom of local women sharing their pearls with you.
We are kicking this series off on February 19th, President's Day- putting a modern twist on women in leadership. Our first pearl will be with another woman business owner. The stories, reels, and blogs will play out throughout March, as our way of celebrating International Women's Month.
Notes:
While I started thinking about how to evolve this series. Conversations helped shape the direction and purpose. In my conversation with Ruth, around her Shero Conference. We aligned on a desire to see women continue to move forward, rather than giving into doubt. For her mobilization means not being trapped by the noise between your ears. Both she and her friend Barb suggested my pearl was an inclination to network & connect with my community. Reflecting, I realized most of my personal blog posts are indeed around sharing another pearl from my thread.
I'm so excited to introduce you virtually to women with pearls of wisdom to share.
Pearls are also a fitting metaphor for this series; they make a stunning presentation. They are formed in oysters & mussels in a variety of bodies of water all over the world. The size, the color, the texture, as well as the time taken to mature all follow different paths; with varied outcomes. Yet each pearl creates one unique bead. Pearls have been considered valuable & beautiful for centuries. Think about it, what starts as an irritant, becomes coated, like nurturing, producing something beautiful. Alone a pearl is not nearly as impressive as when grouped.
Isn't life similar?
When we learn to filter and keep the necessary - we often create something beautiful. Our experiences, friendships, and partnerships become another bead in our thread of pearls that increase in value over time. Then, we pass them along to future generations as treasures.