International Women’s Day 2018 #PressForProgress
Happy International Women’s Day 2018 to all my lovely female friends wherever you are, and to all ladies everywhere.
Last year I did my first ever Facebook Live on International Women’s Day on the theme of Being Bold. You can watch that here https://podcastprogress.com/on-air/#iwd2017
So this year I once again decided to do a Facebook Live to mark the occasion. To highlight my own thoughts on the theme of #PressForProgress and the opportunities that podcasting provides us to develop our voice. Here is the video of it but if you prefer to read then the text continues below the video.
Wait another 200 years?
According to the World Economic Forum 2017 Global Gender Gap report – gender parity is 200 years away. 200 years away! A surprisingly long way away especially considering the opportunities that exist for us all these days.
Not surprisingly therefore, global activism for women’s equality has been fuelled by movements like #metoo and #timesup etc. They are adding to the strong global momentum striving for gender parity.
So, it’s not going to happen overnight is it, if we must wait another 200 years! And it’s sadly still a problem.
#PressForProgress
The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #PressForProgress. I like the sound of that, it sounds strong and forward looking. It incites action. It is nice and positive. Those other campaigns focus on personal pain and awful circumstances and poor treatment. It’s great that women have found the courage to speak up and speak out. Share their stories so we can all understand loud and clear what is STILL happening. Women are still being treated badly. Still being discriminated against.
I started my professional career in the late 1980s in the IT department of a large car factory in Northern England. I know first-hand what it was like being in a minority working in a male dominated environment. I always hope that other women have a more positive experience in their working world. Sadly, it seems that this is still not the case.
Working For Myself Gives Me Freedom
Of course, I now work for myself, using the internet. Both aspects beautifully provide the flexibility in working patterns and styles and opportunities that can still be a hard-fought battle in the general world of work. Or just not an option, making the ongoing struggles between work ambitions and opportunities and family love and support as difficult as ever. My business currently involves the wearing of 3 lovely hats! And all 3 hats support other women in finding their voice, finding new opportunities. It feels great to be able to help others take advantage of the technology that we have at our fingertips today.
I Love Podcasting
I particularly love podcasting and I provide services around podcasting and content marketing.
I make it easy for successful female professionals to build your reputation as an expert and market your business, by harnessing the power of having your own podcast.
It is also exciting, very interesting and a great deal of fun. I do that under the name of Podcast Progress so this year’s theme of #PressForProgress really resonated. It got me thinking in a slightly different direction. More on that in a minute.
I Host My Own Podcast
I am so happy that I host my own podcast, Stitchery Stories, which combines my love of textile art and podcasting. Textile art and embroidery are a predominantly female art. All my guests so far, their appearance on my podcast has been their first experience of being a podcast guest. I love that in a small way I have helped them to press forward, make progress and reach a wider audience and see business impacts from doing so.
Many of my listeners, also predominately female, have also been introduced to the variety and entertainment provided by podcasts, by listening to mine. Many women have told me that my podcast is the first one they have listened to. Podcasts are also very educational providing so much useful information. And presented in a way that is suitable for us busy ladies.
Content Marketing Mentor & Technical Trainer
My third hat is that of content marketing mentor and technical trainer for VAclassroom.com the premier global virtual assistant training university. Again, the world of virtual assistance is predominantly female. Being involved in supporting other women to harness the internet to grow a business using it, is deeply satisfying.
I love these 3 hats!
Women And Podcasting
Anyway, just this week I spotted an article proclaiming the 101 best podcasts in the world. It provided a variety of podcasts, styles, subjects, but there were not that many involving women. In general, there are more men than women involved in podcasting. This is changing, however. More and more women are launching their own podcasts and offering podcast services. When I look at some of the traditional business niches such as ‘the professions’… law, finance, architecture, medicine, engineering, IT etc. I notice firstly there are not so many podcasts in those niches anyway. There are still opportunities there, and yet again, there are far less women represented.
I see a great opportunity sitting there for more women working in the professions, particularly those who are business owners in those niches, who want to develop their voice and get involved in podcasting as a mechanism to do this.
But I do wonder Why is this? Why are there less women with podcasts, why even fewer women in the professions with a podcast. This is the internet. We can make our own opportunities, we can grab any opportunity and make it our own. There is no-one to discriminate against us here!
Shine Above A Sea Of Suits!
So, the idea of #PressForProgress gives me a picture of pressing a button, like we do to activate many things in our lives. Like we press play to watch a video or listen to a podcast. Global initiatives are all very well and good, and they help to create a global voice for things, but,
change comes from individual people making brave steps one at a time.
Using the internet and podcasting as our voice, why aren’t we making the most of an outstanding opportunity to gain parity. We can overtake and outshine those who prefer to keep us in our place and keep us quiet. I see the image of shining above a sea of dull grey suits….
So, ladies, the opportunities are here. Why not launch your own podcast? A podcast gives you a voice. It is a popular medium, it is growing and it’s a great medium for women to be involved with. Press ‘PLAY’ on your own podcast. It’s a great way to get your voice heard, shine a light on your expertise and personality. Shine above a sea of suits. One voice at a time we can #PressForProgress.
If you want to chat about these ideas, please Contact Me for a chat. I always love meeting new people and helping you to push forward, shine a light on you. No matter the mechanism you choose, let’s #PressForProgress.
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