Guest Post by Shyla Chandra

The 2010 BC Women in Business Luncheon: Secrets of being highly productive and happy was an inspirational and heart warming event.  The moderator Rita Rogers had a lively stage presence that filled the room with her warm energy and humourous comments.  The panelists Linda Oglov, Nicole Byres, Sue Sinclair and Doris Cheng all added a unique perspective to the discussion. 

In front Linda Oglov , Nicole Byres, Doris Cheng and Sue Sinclair. In back moderator Rita Rogers.

Linda made me feel excited to be sixty, one day.  Prior to her speech I couldn’t imagine being older than thirty.  Her stories of travel, career changes and constant reinvention helped me realized that life gets more exciting as we get older.  Nicole’s fundamentals of confidence in yourself, eating well and exercise are great building blocks for well being and motivation that often times we forget in everyday life.  Sue’s touching personal stories, helped put life into perspective.  Her message of choice and accountability is definitely needed for self-awareness and self-management. Doris embraces life to the fullest and her message of leaving comfort zones and trying new things was very inspirational.  She was such a raw, real person who made me feel more comfortable just being myself. 

All four of the presenters and their different life experiences were a interesting mix to the panel.  Nothing was repeated and each speaker brought her own personality and experiences to the panel.  Many in the audience, less experienced and more experienced could relate to something from each panelist. The attendees at the event had great stories as well.  I had the opportunity to meet entrepreneurs, a photographer, a hotel manager and even a geologist.  The Women in Business Luncheon is definitely an event for women of all ages, careers and experiences. 

Shyla  was a participant in the 2009 WIL Mentorship program and is a volunteer on the social media team.  She is a passionate student and aspiring social entrepreneur.  She loves reading, writing and running.  

For more on the May 6th event see video produced by Cossette West.  BC Women in Business luncheon.

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By Guest Blogger Azita Ardakani

The room was filled with beautiful women, dressed to the nines in elegant formal wear, champagne was poured, heels clicked, and conversation was shared. Over all it initially appeared to be like most celebrations (albeit with a higher percentage of estrogen) however there was something distinctly different from this gathering. This congregation of ladies had one thing in common: the Women in Leadership foundation and their second annual Superwoman Gala. Assembled inside were mentors and mentees, mentors turned mentees and mentees turned mentors (try saying that 3 times)! There were also over 80 volunteers in the form of professionals and students alike, successful business women, and those in the pursuit of discovering how to be more successful in their own right. It seemed there was a woman in that room from every walk of life, in every sort of profession.

When I asked WIL founder Maya Kanigan what her what her ultimate outcome for the foundation with this event would be, I expected to hear to hear something along the lines of a great fundraising and awareness opportunity. I was moved and surprised when her eyes brimmed with tears and she responded, “For every woman to be entirely, unapologetically okay with who and how they are right now. Right at this moment.” This would prove to be the first time of many that night where I was stirred and inspired.

As we shuffled inside the gorgeous chandelier-lit dining room, decorated in WIL’s colors of chocolate brown and turquoise blue we sat down to a three course meal which proved to be only part of the nourishment for the evening ahead. Andrea Holmes; four time Canadian Paralympic Champion and 2010 Paralympic Hopeful was the keynote for the event and strutted up on stage to give a memorable speech that would kick off the night flawlessly. Andrea got the crowd’s attention immediately as she stated she is a superwoman because she was wearing 3 inch heels with one leg, and because received laser hair removal that day (insert empathetic sigh from crowd here).

Her message was that of believing in yourself no matter what (in her case even when her prosthetic leg, heavy with ski equipment flew ahead of her down a mountain and she had to chase after it). She shared sentiments of her struggles (being told she could not compete), her accomplishments (competing in Greece and holding the torch for Canada in the Beijing Olympics) and wise words (“when we wake up, we have two choices, chase your dreams, or keep dreaming”). Needless to say, Andrea has chased her dreams and continues to. By the end of the speech there was not a dry eye in the house and I was ready for the girl to tear off her shirt to reveal a Superwoman “S” underneath.

The night continued with multiple fashion shows, a silent auction including diamonds bid right off Maya herself and dessert (naturally). As the evening wrapped up I was reminded of what I think we already know, but forget to remind ourselves: we are exactly where we should be right at this moment and entirely perfect as we are. The “S” in Superwoman is the strength in each woman, whether they see it or not, it is there, and such a night had each woman dusting off their cape to be reminded of just that.

 Azita Ardakani is a social media enthusiast, relentless inspiration junkie and advocate of change. You can find her tweeting away and consulting on new media strategies for organizations, companies and super women alike.  www.twitter.com/lovesocial

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Guest blog by: Marissa Stapley-Ponikowski

They say you learn something new every day. 

And then there are days when you learn so many new things and feel so very inspired that your hand cramps from all the notes you’re taking.

Inspiration for me came in the form of the Women in Leadership Foundation’s Ontario Women in Business Luncheon, held on Thursday, October 29^th, at the Design Exchange in Toronto’s downtown core.

I attended the event alone, and was feeling nervous about the prospect of networking. (I’m a freelance writer and author and spend most of my time working alone at my laptop; I’ve just finished my first novel and am working on my second, so spend much of my time on a fictional plane – when I get out into the real world, sometimes I feel a little lost.)

But I had nothing to fear – I only stood alone for a moment before women began to approach me. Lovely, likeminded women nurturing hopes, dreams, and accomplishments, just like I am. Hopes, dreams, and accomplishments that are business-related, but also life, love, and happiness -related. It was my kind of scene.

The room was full of passion, the kind of passion that – no offence to men; I really do love men and the special brand of passion they bring to their life and work – only women possess. Dare I call it Girl Power?  Okay, no, I won’t. But there was something truly special and empowering in the air.

In my mind, I started calling the event the Passionately Managing Change & Sustainability luncheon.

Here’s why:

The first speaker on the five-woman discussion panel – moderated by CBC’s Dianne Buckner, who is so fabulous and pretty in person I could hardly stand it – was Kelly Drennan, Fashion Takes Action founder. (www.fashiontakesaction.com)

The first thing I learned from the stylish and dynamic Drennan is that I am not alone in this world in terms of my fashionista sensibilities battling it out with the side of me that wants to hug trees and sing Kumbaya. I also learned that green can be sexy, and green really is the new black.

Drennan had me from the moment she stepped out from behind the podium, showcased her snazzy Little Black Dress, and said, “It’s organic cotton and organic wool.” I felt like I’d encountered a kindred spirit when she talked about her “inner hippie”, “a-ha moments”, and admirable desire to make the world a better place for her two daughters to inhabit – which is what led her to found FTA, and put on the Green Gala, an eco-couture fashion show, every year. (I also found I knew exactly what she meant when she shared with a room of people she’d never met the heartbreaking difficulties of trying to do and be it all: wife, mother, businesswoman, world saver. You can’t. And then you have a breakdown. After which point, you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get back to the tasks at hand; except that now you’ve taken up yoga.)

Drennan’s contribution to the panel was profound – she is, I believe, a quintessential modern woman. She’s fashionable and savvy, but she’s also passionate about the planet, and not just because it’s trendy right now to be eco-minded.

Next up was Judith Lipp, a woman who made my fashionista sensibilities want to hide at the back of the room and pretend to be wearing Birkenstocks. Lipp is so humble and self-deprecating, and yet behind it all is a woman who is so intelligent and thoughtful and deep that saying I admire her is like saying I think handbags are nifty. Lipp is the executive director of the Toronto Renewable Energy Co-Operative (Trec.on.ca) Among other things, the organization is behind the giant wind turbine on Toronto’s waterfront, a project that is community-owned – one of the many new things I learned at the luncheon. (You can also tour the turbine with your family, an outing I plan to make in the near future, my two toddlers in tow. Wish me luck.)

Lipp taught me that being green takes hard work, not just words. At the beginning of the event, when I was standing in a corner pretending to be super-absorbed in the luncheon’s program because I was too nervous to talk to anyone, I read that in addition to what Lipp does for the environment on a daily basis, she –and I quote the program directly here -  “in her free time, initiated, managed, and led the construction of a cooperatively built straw-bale, off-grid cottage in rural Nova Scotia, which is available to its members on a time-share basis.”

Wow. I thought it was a big deal when, a few months ago, I gave up using plastic food storage baggies entirely. I can only imagine the challenges one might face when trying to build and manage a cottage made entirely of straw bales. I felt positively awed by Lipp’s commitment to exploring and finding solutions to sustainable energy issues, a commitment so effortless and second-nature to her that it was obvious we were in the presence of woman who had found her niche in the world – and who was, little by little, saving the world every day. (All the while being really, really modest about it.)

Even though Lipp did say that the environmental challenges this world faces are not ones that we have taken up, thus far, particularly well as a continent, she was also full of hope. “If you believe in what you’re doing, it’s not a sacrifice,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you have a plan, as long as you’re passionate.”

Kimberly Marshall, the VP of Finance and Administration with the Ontario Power Authority, was the third woman to address the crowd. At this point – the halfway mark –  I was losing focus slightly – it happens when I haven’t had a coffee for a while –  and found myself eyeing the fabulous red patent leather pumps on a woman sitting near me. (That’s one of the benefits of going to a luncheon attended chiefly by women – forget people watching; I like to shoe watch.) But Marshall got my attention immediately. This woman is obviously a force to be reckoned with. She’s attractive and blonde, with a friendly smile; at first glance, you can’t imagine that she is, in her own words, a gal with a fiercely competitive streak, who likes to kick some serious you-know-what.

Marshall taught me with her you-know-what kicking speech, that green is the future. She talked about the Green Energy Act, and the task she and her organization has been given to create 50,000 green jobs within the next three years. As she spoke, it became quite obvious that we are in the midst of a green shift, and that there are people at the helm of this shift who are going to make it happen. As in, her.At the end of her speech, Marshall, too, mentioned passion. “Find your passion. Find what you love and do it.” (You see why I was beginning to believe managing sustainability wasn’t the only theme?)

Karen Clarke-Whistler, the Chief Environmental Officer for the TD Bank Financial Group, spoke next. Another beautiful woman, another inspirational story, and another lesson, one that I have been resisting to a certain extent. But here it is: Being green isn’t just about not exploiting resources. Businesses are going to exploit the many resources this country has, and their main challenge is going to be to do so in a sustainable way. Clarke-Whistler made me believe, or at least fervently hope, that this might be possible, that big business really can have a heart. TD has, after all, hired a Chief Environmental Officer. The entire concept fascinated me.

Clarke-Whistler also talked about the importance of being grateful for what we have – we live in a country, she said, that is so rich in resources it’s staggering. She’s been to places, she explained, where people are fighting and dying for what we have. And traveling, said Clarke-Whistler, is such an important way to truly understand the world, and perhaps the only way to really understand why we are so blessed in North America – and also why and how we can do so much better in terms of sustainability and eco-awareness. “Follow your passions,” were her final words of advice. “Focus on facts, not rhetoric. To be productive, focus on solutions, not problems.”

 Finally, Rose Gage, who is a WIL board member, spoke. She had to pull the microphone down because she, as she proclaimed gleefully, was the shortest speaker of the day. And she is a tiny woman – but what she lacks in stature she more than makes up for in personality and pizzazz. Gage is the VP of Business Development and Marketing for Schneider Electric, and she taught me that being green can be profitable. There’s the triple bottom line to think about, Gage said (agreeing with Drennan, who’d also mentioned the concept of profit, planet, and people being the new markers of corporate success). “Green is good,” Gage enthused. “It’s a good business platform.”

When I left the event, I found I was full of energy, hope, and, of course, passion. The discussion made me think that the future is in fact bright. Bright green, perhaps? I certainly hope so. As I go forward into the world, promoting my first novel and dedicating myself to my family, my work, and my world-saving sensibilities, I know everything I learned at the luncheon is going to stay with me, and I won’t soon forget these passionate women and their incredible accomplishments, or what they taught me about putting my heart into doing what I do.

 Marissa Stapley-Ponikowski is a Toronto-based freelance writer and author. Her first novel, Saving the World (in Sensible Shoes),  will be released in 2010. To learn more about her, visit www.marincommunications.com,  or www.savingtheworldinsensibleshoes.blogspot.com.

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We asked 2 different women at different life stages to blog about their experience at our recent Vancouver networking event – Sweet Talk.  This sweet, stylish networking event brought together fashion, chocolate and wine.  

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By Sherel Loo

The 2009 WIL mentorship program is more than half-way through and I am so lucky to have been paired up with such a fantastic mentor. And judging from the feedback received from other participants — mentees and mentors — they too, feel the same. You will also be pleasantly surprised at this year’s roster. Mentors and mentees hail from a wide range of industries, including Aboriginal education, accounting, events, finance, hospitality, IT, law, marketing, not-for-profit, public service, real estate, retail, small business, and students undertaking their undergraduate or graduate degree. It can’t get any better than this when you’re a mentee and you have this impressive line-up of women to learn from. I am in awe.

One of the perks of this program is the opportunity to participate in a variety of professional leadership training workshops. Mentors are shown how to hone and further their leadership skills while mentees are guided through topics such as self-esteem and courage, networking, public speaking and financials to increase confidence so that they too, can become women leaders.

When recently asked how the program is going so far, I was inspired by the commonality in responses. Mentors value the friendship that has blossomed, see the match as a two-way partnership of never-ending learning opportunities, and are simply enjoying the experience and gaining a lot of satisfaction from it.

“It’s a good partnership, and I think my mentee has as much life experience as me. There is so much to talk about that it’s not just about business. I’ve learned a lot from my mentee and am finding it very enriching.” — Rahima Shahban, Mentor

Mentees are grateful for their mentor’s guidance and resourcefulness, and for that someone who genuinely wants to see them succeed.

“It’s hard to find someone who wants to see you succeed, and my mentor helps me find the answers I seek.” — Gina Miller, Mentee

From the looks of it, I’m positive that many of these friendships will flourish beyond the 6-month program. And that’s something to smile about.

In addition, a number of mentees, including myself, have furthered our roles with WIL by volunteering on the Marketing-Communications team. This team was created to build awareness for WIL, deepen relationships with existing audiences, and increase participation in WIL programs and events. We look forward to meeting you at a future WIL event!

Sherel Loo is a mentee in the 2009 Mentorship program;  Editor of WIL’s monthly newsletter; and a volunteer member of WIL’s marketing & communications team.   Her day job is Assistant Director of Communications, Canadian Education Centre Network.

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On Friday I attended the Women In Leadership Foundation’s (WIL) 5th Annual BC Aboriginal Women in Leadership Forum: Seeds of Success. We encouraged women from all backgrounds to attend the event. But to be honest, until I was there, I wasn’t really sure as a non-Aboriginal woman what I would take away from it. But at the end of the day I felt so empowered as a woman that next year I will bring ALL my girlfriends.

Within moments of sitting down in the theatre next to my friend Marlis (who did all the graphic design for the event) I realized I had made a clear mistake. I hadn’t thought to bring Kleenex. We knew we were going to experience something different when Maya Kanigan (WIL) and Sheryl Fisher (Squamish Nation) opened the day talking about how this event was about “Honouring the women warrior in us all”. And then Sheryl’s mother Audrey Rivers took us through a traditional opening prayer and a women’s warrior song to open the day.

What really made this event different for me was the truly open, honest, authentic and sometimes raw stories told about how each of these women have been successful in their lives. Yes each had attained professional success, but their stories were really a testament to their personal success. The panel included a banker, chief, artist, entrepreneur and a business woman. Three of them were moms (and many at some point single moms). All had overcome significant obstacles to success such as: teenage parents, residential schools, being surrounded by addiction, foster care, poverty, suicide, divorce, single parenthood, loss of cultural identity and being a marginalized minority in the country of their birth. Each learnt from the stories told by their elders (Grandmothers were a significant theme). And while all of them faced adversity all their stories focused on the positive, the attainable, the future generation of Aboriginal women. The warrior in us all.

The session was moderated by Michele Baptiste, National Manager of Aboriginal Relations for Scotiabank. All the stories were fantastic. And I would love to tell them all here. But they seem too personal for an unknown 3rd party to try and give them their due. But I will summarize some of the great nuggets of truth that I took from their speeches.

Jessie Williams – Special Projects Officer, Four Host First Nations

Jessie provided a strong start to the day, with some relevant lessons for all of us:

• We are responsible for who you are today and who you will be tomorrow. You need to know and believe in yourself = this gives you the power to make it happen.
• Listen to your dreams NOT logic - as children we don’t put limits on our dreams, we should be the same as adults.
• Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. For her fear was the idea of NOT accomplishing her goals and that motivated her.

Some of her inspiration came from:

• her parents – who no matter how many problems they had always encouraged her to be/have more
• her grandfather – who taught her to never let anyone tell you that you are less than you are
• her grandmother – who taught her how to be a woman & a mother and how to be loved
• mentors – you can’t achieve anything on your own you MUST surround yourself with supportive people and seek guidance from others. By seeking their guidance you are honouring that person
• herself – most inspiration comes from within

Chief Lisa Shaver, Chief of the Penelakut Tribe

Lisa is a fantastic story teller. She had us moving from tears to laughter again and again as she spoke. Her stories were laced with the theme of stubbornness that seems to have followed her throughout her life (and is likely one of her success tools). Her tips for success included:

• Have to live your own life.
• Cultural identity is a key to your strength – for her this came from the stories of her grandmother. You need to find your own path, but know and learn from cultural teachings.
• Have to become the change you want. She has to be an example to her children, life and community. We are the answer to our children’s future.

Denise Brillon Hill – Entrepreneur & Designer of Artifaax.com

Denise clearly has a strong sense of self and her values. Denise believes it is never too late or too early to fulfill your dreams. To her the foundation is a strong set of values, these values create passion and that passion will lead to your success. Values are what give your life direction, and hers include:

• Show honour
• Never too young or too small to have a voice
• Speak your truth
• Speak for those who have no voice
• Value originality and don’t be afraid to step outside the box
• Be yourself
• Value of friends and family should NEVER be compromised for success.

Business to her is about relationships with people and NOT just exchanging money. We can show our community, business and government where our values lie when we make our own purchasing decisions. Is it really good value to drive to a big store to buy big bags of things that clutter our lives? Why not support the local family run vegetable store instead?

She also has a vision for Aboriginal goods and that is to move them beyond being just tourist items. Her company Artifaax is well on its way of helping Aboriginal products become part of the mainstream.

Renae Morriseau – filmmaker, actress and writer

Renae began and finished her talk with a quote (which I hope I got right): To create story you must be physically energized, emotionally attuned, mentally focused and spiritually aligned.

Her story was somewhat different from the others as she grew up in Urban Winnipeg amongst a variety of cultures. She even danced in a Ukranian dance troupe at one point.

Her role as a full time artist is to tell stories. The different stages of her life and career taught her the critical thinking of storytelling and to see the Aboriginal perspective. Something in her compels her to keep asking questions and telling those stories. She is looking for ways to continue to tell the Aboriginal story whether through comedy, drama or documentary. She also continually asks herself who do you attract? Who are the people around you that motivate you?

Renae is a strong, attainable role model who works in a field she is very passionate about, and through that work is also honouring her culture. Renae’s most recent documentary “The Trail to Moose Lake” about the elders Fort McKay will launch next month.

Q&A

Some of the best candid moments came during the Q&A. Daycare was resoundingly named an issue for becoming successful as a woman. And all women tend to take care of everyone else before ourselves. When the panel was asked how do you take care of yourself and your health, the answers ranged from:

• Be your own best friend and not an enemy
• laugh, love drink women
• think health and happy
• breathe
• connect to your inner child… what gives you joy?
• self awareness
• shopping
• Important not to focus on competing with the men, but to ensure you look after yourself first

The session finished with another song and a dance. We were all included and yes, my part of the audience danced like wolves – including howling. The session was followed by scholarships given to 2 talented young Aboriginal women to contrute to their education. And finally a sharing circle.

So what did this day mean to me? Well I’ll quote Maya Kanigan, as she spoke about what WIL means to her…

“Every women in this room will be a role model to another women in her life. WIL is about bringing these individuals together to learn from, inspire and encourage each other to make a positive difference to the future of women’s leadership in Canada. Each of us has the power to make a difference – WIL is about working together to get there. “

An event such as this brings women from ALL backgrounds together to work on our collective future.

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I attended the Women In Leadership Foundation’s (WIL) Annual BC Women In Business Luncheon in May.

Four women, from different industries with very different career paths gave us their perspective on overcoming change. Overally a very insightful afternoon with a lot of common themes to success in managing change. There were certainly a number of ‘light bulb’ moments that had personal relevance for me. But I expect that each woman in the sold out Hycroft ballroom took home something different.

Below are some of the key insights into each woman’s success.

Rita Rogers, Senior Manager Events, Canucks Sports & Entertainment

The always charming Rita, acted as moderator for the event. She opened with a story relevant to me when she received some great advice just as she was about to have her first child…. “It will pass”. It is often hard to imagine that things will change or that “it will pass”, especially when you are up at all hours, with no sleep and are staring at the shopping channel for hours on end. But when you look back you realize that this advice is true. For all aspects of our lives.

Andrea Scott, Co-owner Skoah & Chikki Munki

Andrea has had an interesting career path from teacher on the lower eastside to fashion sales to owning her own business as well as being a marketing consultant at the same time and also being a Mom (she was very pregnant with child #2 while giving the speech). The big theme for Andrea is that you need to have a vision of your career vs a master plan. Now given, Andrea is the type of woman who LOVES change. But it is true that with an overarching vision of your career you are able to adjust and take advantage of new opportunities, while never losing sight of your vision. It also helped Andrea to have an attitude that “very little in life isn’t completely irreversible”. She felt that if a new opportunity didn’t work she could always go back.

Now I have to ask myself what is my vision? Being a strategic marketer I really should know the answer to that question. I tell clients and peers everyday that you can’t go forward and be successful without a vision. This certainly gave me something to think about.

Silvia Livingston, District VP, TD Canada Trust

I’ll be honest I wasn’t expecting to learn a lot from Silvia’s talk. She has worked in banking (and at TD) for her entire career. I’m a marketer, who has spent much of her career in advertising agencies, and I didn’t think there would be a lot of parallels for me to draw from. I was wrong.

Silvia spoke about 3 key themes to success in her career.

Knowledge is key – you build credibility through knowledge – both top down and bottom up. For Silvia this was particularly important when she had a staff with more years and more experience than her. She felt strong knowledge and leading by example helped her build the necessary credibility with her team.

Check your ego at the door – No job is too small and we all succeed if we get their together. This is true in group dynamics but also in your individual career path. Getting the career you want is not always a straight line. Silvia took 2 different lateral moves or demotions in her career in order to achieve the position and success she has today. These positions were challenging, but they allowed her to broaden her experience. She credits these moves as a key part of her success.

• This was a light bulb moment for me. As I continue to struggle to find full time work I wonder if there aren’t some great opportunities out there that could help me broaden my skill set and help me advance my career in the long term. Hopefully I will be able to check my ego at the door.

Know your own weaknesses – when dealing with mistakes & failures it is important to learn from the mistake, take ownership and then get over it. But most of all understanding your own weaknesses can potentially help avoid future mistakes. For Silvia this was about talking less and listening more – this one conveniently is also relevant for me.

Claire Smith, VP Sales & Marketing, Vancouver Convention Centre

Claire had a career epiphany in a magazine store while in Frankfurt during a business trip when she found a book called “Managing your career“. She notes that the book itself wasn’t necessarily that profound, but it spoke to her at the right time in her career. At that point she felt she needed a change after 17 years in the same organization. So she went out on her own and became a consultant. Not the right step for everyone, but the one that made the right sense for her at the time. Her advice:

• there is a momentum to change… taking the 1st big step forward starts the ball rolling
• take charge of your career – there are no bad decisions as everything you do adds to your tool kit
• don’t be afraid to take risks professional and personally
• ask for help
• don’t let self doubt take over – push through it
• 3 degree of separation – there are a lot of people who can help you or they know someone who can

For me Claire reminded me the most of me – with the exception that she has gone out and taken charge of her career. I’m still in that 1st big step stage.

Taya Hawes-Puiu, Chief Marketing Officer, Cossette West

I know Taya, we used to work together at Cossette. We never worked on any direct project together, so we know each other from those short little conversations at social functions, in the hallway, elevator, etc. I learnt a lot about Taya this day. She is a bold and brave woman who has seized opportunities when they presented themselves and on at least one occassion asked for advice from the Universe (giving them a deadline for their response). She also came to a realization of her own vision while lying in a hospital bed in Hawaii. The secrets to her success are:

• be bold and brave
• the only constant is change
• trust your instincts
• seize opportunities
• if you don’t know how – make a list
• cherish your relationships

To me this last one is the most important one as a human being. Jobs are not who we are. It is the people we know and the relationships we have that we cherish most in life. Don’t let them get forgotten while you are busy doing something else.

Now what?

For a lot of years I took myself out of the drivers seat of my own career. And decisions made weren’t really mine, but the one that came up at the time. I’ve been nervous to step out there and be bold, in part because that little ‘friend’ self doubt crops up. I really hate asking for help. And mostly I’m afraid if I make a mistake, go the wrong direction, take a demotion that I’ll never be able to climb back to where I was before. At the same time I want to be flexible for change – I just don’t want it to bend me like it has in the past. Somewhere in there is a happy medium – plus time for lunch with my girlfriends.

A note about Women In Leadership Foundation (WIL)

Women like to stick together. We are there to support each other, keep each other company and help each other succeed. This is true for women at all stages of their careers. Each of the speakers mentioned a friend (in the room) who helped support or mentor them towards their current success. To me this is the key to continued development of women in leadership. WIL gets that and it is this type of event that helps bring us together to learn from, support and celebrate each other’s success. I’m pretty passionate about this. And it is for this reason that I volunteer on WIL’s advisory board and lead their volunteer brand/marketing team.

Tracey Rossignol is a member of the WIL Advisory Board and the Marketing & Communications Team Lead.  She regularly blogs about motherhood and marketing at https://tjrramblings.blogspot.com.

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WIL Goes Green – Ontario Green Works Project
By David Mossman

WIL in partnership with the Province of Ontario is running the GREEN WORKS project. This project shall help industry in Ontario attract skilled female workers and bring together key stakeholders for collaborative approach and strategy building. The project will also travel across the province to create awareness of green career opportunities for young women.

The centerpiece for the project is the GREEN WORKS 2009 – Woman in Environmental Occupations Conference held in Ottawa on Oct 29-30th. The conference shall bring together women from across the province to share knowledge, best practices and establish networks that will foster their leadership development.

WIL is inviting employers, industry, educators and first nations to participate in the GREEN WORKS 2009 conference. For more info email us at: info@womeninleadership.ca or contact Laura Booker (Coordinator) at laura@womeninleadership.ca

Highlights include:
Reception/breakfast and lunch panels/workshops/aboriginal forum/

GREEN WORKS 2009 – Woman in Environmental Occupations Conference
Oct 29-30th Marconi Centre, Ottawa

Major funding for Green Works is provided by

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Through volunteerism, gala unites community
by Vera Kanigan

Today more than ever before, we hear the term “community”. Actually, the word has been in the English language since the 14th century and can refer to a range of senses and references. To mention only a few, community can refer to: the people of a district, community of people with special or ethnic interests or relationships – sharing of common goals, or even local groupings passed on by proximity. More recently, since the 1990s, we have heard of “virtual communities”-“social connections that emerge from the Internet when people carry on public discussions to form webs of personal relationships.” (Howard Rheingold) Read more…

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