It’s Women’s History Month! The time where we celebrate all things women, from accomplishments, policy, and more. Oftentimes we discuss women empowerment but use it as a blanket statement for positive gatherings of women but it’s so much more than that. Empowerment can be defined as “the process of becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling one’s life and claiming one’s rights. ”per Oxford’s Dictionary. But what does that mean IRL and how can we make this feasible? Below are three ways to support and empowerment women.
1.Supporting another woman’s efforts.
I mean truly believing in and supporting their cause or business. This can be done by offering your time as a volunteer, recommending their organization or service when someone is looking for something similar to support, connecting them to a mentor or another organization that they could possibly collaborate with, and sharing their work. These are all simple and easy ways to support their efforts.It also doesn’t hurt to be happy at another woman’s success, even we ourselves haven’t personally achieved the same thing.
2.Killing the narrative of “women don’t support each other”.
Refer back to #1 but this can also be done by nipping catiness and gossip in the bud. By not entertaining it there is less of the negative stereotype going around. Also don’t be afraid to stand up for your fellow woman even if it is in the workplace or an unpopular opinion. Sometimes these negative moments come as microaggressions from outsiders like “I saw Stacy opened up a lil boutique”, counter that by offering a spin on the positive “ Yes, she did open a boutique over the weekend, it’s the only one that carries this particular line of purses. You should go check it out one day.” The more positive we are towards one another the more we can collectively kill the narrative.
3.Be a real friend.
No, everyone isn’t your friend or going to want to be yours. But to the ones that do fall in that category, be as present as possible for them. Check in with them to see how they really are doing, do they need anything, and most importantly be an accountability buddy. Most women are busy climbing their career ladder, building a family, expanding their education, and sometimes all three. So having a friend that is actually there can help women thrive versus surviving all the things that may be on their plate.
These 3 things can be done with little to no effort on your part and done not only in the month of March but all year round. How are you supporting the next woman? And did we miss any ways to continue to support and empower each other? Drop us a comment below.
