It’s International Women’s Day and it’s time to celebrate our achievements, our collaborations and potential. I am sharing a group of inspiring quotes* I discovered while researching this day. These women have shown us how to use our voice to inspire and lead others.

“There’s something so special about a woman who dominates in a man’s world. It takes a certain grace, strength, intelligence, fearlessness and the nerve to never take no for an answer.”  – Rihanna

2. “I am a woman and I get to define what that means.” – Swati Sharma

3. “A strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic, decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts.” – Nancy Rathburn

4. “I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life—and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.”
– Georgia O’Keeffe

5. “Don’t think about making women fit the world — think about making the world fit women.”  – Gloria Steinem

6. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker

7. “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg

8. “I encourage women to step up. Don’t wait for somebody to ask you.” – Reese Witherspoon, Actor

9. “I’ve never been interested in being invisible and erased.”  – Laverne Cox

10. “When the world tells you to shrink, expand.” – Elaine Welteroth

11. “The success of every woman should be the inspiration to another. We should raise each other up. Make sure you’re very courageous: be strong, be extremely kind, and above all be humble.”
– Serena Williams

12. “Today, we are celebrating the strength, determination, and resilience of women everywhere.”
– Michelle Obama

13. “…this International Women’s Day, allow me to share what I’ve learned. You don’t need to be ‘one of the guys.’ You are strong, brave, and destined to lead. Own it.” – Tammy Duckworth

14. “Women should be celebrated every day…It doesn’t just honor the iconic women who have changed history, but encourages new generations to dream big and know that anything is possible.”
– Molly McCook

15. “No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens.”
– Michelle Obama

16. “Women make up more than half of the world’s population and potential, so it is neither just nor practical for their voices, for our voices, to go unheard at the highest levels of decision-making.”
– Meghan Markle

17. “Organize, agitate, educate, must be our war cry.” – Susan B. Anthony

18. “You never completely have your rights, one person, until you all have your rights.” – Marsha P. Johnson

19. “Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.” – G.D. Anderson

20. “To all the little girls who are watching this, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful, and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams.”
– Hillary Clinton

21. “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” – Shirley Chisholm

22. “It’s okay if you fall down and lose your spark. Just make sure that when you get back up, you rise as the whole damn fire.” – Colette Werden

23. “The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who’s going to stop me.” – Ayn Rand

24. “Do not live someone else’s life and someone else’s idea of what womanhood is. Womanhood is you.” – Viola Davis

25. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt

26. “A woman in harmony with her spirit is like a river flowing. She goes where she will without pretense and arrives at her destination prepared to be herself and herself only.” – Maya Angelou

27. “I want every girl to know that her voice can change the world.” – Malala Yousafzai

28. “I do not believe in using women in combat, because females are too fierce.” – Margaret Mead

29. “I’m pretty good at weaseling my way into a job, even if I have no business being there.” – Aubrey Plaza

30. “I am a feminist. I’ve been a female for a long time now. It’d be stupid not to be on my own side.”
– Maya Angelou

31. “Be free, be fierce, but most of all, have fun while being a feminist.” – Nimco Ali

32. A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

Quotes c/o Unexpected Virtual Tours and Training https://unexpectedvirtualtours.com/resources/womens-history-month-quotes/

The post HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY appeared first on jryanpartners.com.

Originally Published on https://jryanpartners.com/feed/

Julienne Ryan Humorist, Speaker, Trainer, Facilitator, Coach

Julienne B. Ryan began her professional career at age five when she did TV commercials and learned important things like “the teamsters always eat first,” her social security number and how to endorse checks for bank deposit.

Ryan studied psychology in college because she wanted to understand humans. She conducted her “field work” in a variety of roles, hearing the phrases “merger synergies, reorganizations, downsizing and rightsizing for change” more times than she cares to mention.

Later she enrolled in an Ivy League graduate school where she paid oodles of money to validate her prior on-the-job learning experiences. However, she did learn to name drop up-to-date theories and trendy psychologists with alarming ease.

Ryan evolved into working in “Talent Management,” a fancy way of saying “try to find people and keep them moderately happy.” With inadequate budgets and staff allocations, she had to find creative ways to encourage her staff to work effectively. These ranged from begging and borrowing resources, improvising childcare, telling stories and even giving snacks as rewards. She tried to convince herself that working a bazillion hours and “multi-tasking” equaled achievement.

Her work took place in cubicles, conference rooms or, with luck, in offices with a door. Occasionally she would make the time to emerge from her allotted real estate to really talk to people. Ryan learned something transformative in the process:

Yes, she was effective. But not because she used fancy theories – or gave great snacks. Ryan’s success, her staff believed, was a result of her uncanny knack for weaving storytelling with humor to motivate and encourage them. Crucially, they encouraged Ryan to de-emphasize “that normal HR stuff” and focus on bringing her unique storytelling skills to a broader stage.

Thanks to them, Ryan continues to collect, connect and tell stories in her work helping people find their “true selves in the world of work.

She is the author of the humorous, all true "The Learned It In Queens Communications Playbook - Winning Against Distraction!".that now includes a workbook and is available at booksellers across the globe..

She is a guest contributor to The Procurement Foundry, LifeBlood, and the global storytelling community.

Certifications include
Accumatch (BI) Behavior Intelligence
Narativ Applied Storytelling Methodologies
Collective Brains – Mentorship Methodologies