Celebrate Extraordinary Everyday Women

Today is International Women’s Day. I invite you to take time to think about the women in your life who deserve to be celebrated but seldom get recognized. Let’s salute the extraordinary everyday women who add value to the world with no expectation of celebrity … or even acknowledgement. We all know many of these women.
I’m not talking about celebrating martyrdom here, but rather, taking a few moments to meaningfully consider the women who quietly make a difference in the world. We have become such an extrovert and fame-driven society, with influencers and celebs sucking all the oxygen, that countless women who have profound impact go unnoticed and under-appreciated.
Let’s make today their day. Let’s honour them. Let’s shout from the rooftops in celebration of their greatness.
I’ve been doing this myself this week, leading up to International Women’s Day. It’s a humbling experience. I confess, I’ve been pushing for visibility, touting my Wall Street Journal best-selling book and bragging about my recent features in Forbes, Women’s World, LA Weekly, etc. Meanwhile, millions of women, everyday, show up with compassion, kindness, generosity, empathy, curiosity, and creativity. They listen, inspire, and build trust. They seek to understand the perspectives of others. They lift up others to be the best they can, never seeking reward or the limelight.
I was talking to my daughter about International Women’s Day and my husband walked by saying “So when do men get celebrated?” I immediately quipped back, “Well, that would be the other 364 days of the year.” I said it as a fun bite back. But then I got to thinking that there was some truth in that. Women have been conditioned to play small, play nice, not brag on themselves, not take up too much space.
So today, I’d like to start a wave of well-deserved (but too long delayed) heartfelt gratitude and recognition for all those women who make a difference – whether for their family, intimate partners, community, or on the global scene – without expectation.
We’ve become very focused on transactional relationships in our society today. Always looking for the return on investment. Let’s honour those women who do great things with no thought of ‘what’s in it for them’. Let’s celebrate them for a change.
I invite you to recognize them by posting about them publicly. I’ve set up a page to do that. Simply go HERE on Facebook or HERE if Insta is your jam and post a pic and/or brief blurb about your chosen woman to honour.
Don’t be shy or stingy with sharing the praise. Choose as many women as you think deserve to be recognized. Share the post in your circles so it can travel today and beyond giving the long overdue appreciation to extraordinary everyday women who make the world a better place just by being them.