International Women’s Day this Tuesday was an important opportunity to recognise women’s incredible achievements, raise awareness and encourage others to advocate for gender equality.
With only three
weeks until I retire (eek, doesn’t feel real) I’ve been thinking about the
amazing people I have worked with and how lucky I’ve been to have truly inspirational
female bosses at the very start and end of my career.
They didn’t
only help my personal development, but they have challenged bias and helped
establish the value of women as leaders.
Sharon
Beamish, my first boss when I joined the NHS 30 years ago, was extraordinary.
She started as a domestic assistant in her local hospital and through grit,
talent, drive and determination ended up as a chief executive. Sharon was proud
of her working-class background, spent seven years doing a part-time
degree while working and earned so much respect across the West Midlands where
she worked.
You often hear
about people who get to the top pulling the ladder up after them. Sharon
never did that, she encouraged and invested in other women to succeed and was a
wonderful coach. I worked for her for five years and she encouraged me to move
into mental health through supporting a secondment, as she knew I had a special
interest in the area and needed to move on. Great leaders don’t create
followers, they create more leaders.
And then
I’ve had Evelyn at the end of my career: an exceptional person and leader.
Evelyn has challenged so much bias throughout her life and, like Sharon, has
worked immensely hard to get to her position and hugely supports people’s
personal development. She is passionate about tackling inequalities and
was awarded an OBE for services
to ethnic minorities in the field of health.
Evelyn
challenges people to be more inclusive in such a gentle, calm and kind way. Her
strength is her gentleness, remaining constant and clear-minded across all manner of
situations. I wish I’d worked with someone like Evelyn earlier on
in my career, but I’m just so grateful that I’ve finished my career with her.
Of course,
I’ve also worked with many inspirational and brilliant men, but as a woman I
think having two remarkable bosses at the start and finish of my working life
has made me a better person. They have owned their unique story and
used their authentic voice.
And along
the road I have tried to challenge bias in my own way and through my leadership
style.
My mother
was a brilliant role model, always encouraging me to be myself and work hard
but to pick my own style, which is perhaps why I have pursued climbing, a
fairly male dominated activity. When I was young, my family used to call me
‘Contrary Mary’ because I wanted to be so independent, always choosing my
own path. This has mostly served me well, although it has occasionally got me
into trouble; for example, when I had my stomach pumped as a young girl after
eating laburnum seeds to prove to my brother that they weren’t poisonous!
But I have
learnt from and been influenced by so many different women, from every corner
of the world and every walk of life. My daughter, Madonna and even Sarah Conner
in the Terminator films, who is my ultimate female hero.
Madonna has
pushed boundaries, with a super smart business brain and an unshakeable sense
of self. Like her music or hate it,
the ‘Queen of pop’ has challenged traditional views of women with her
own relentless and controversial
mindset, and an incredible penchant for not following any rules. She has
stood for what she believed in,
despite the critics, and is an example of how to succeed through hard
work and willpower.
Then we have Sarah
Connor, who we saw evolve from a young waitress with man troubles into
a muscle-flexing, pull-up-doing, one-handed-shotgun-loading heroine. She’s
the prototype for the modern action heroine, and a model of strength and
femininity existing side by side. A symbol of what women can and will do if
their survival, and the survival of their children, is threatened.
At the end of the day, the best role models are
women who are confidently themselves, who bring light into the world because
they are authentic and real. They are everywhere, in history, literature, the
news and amongst us all. And as I come full circle at the end of my career, I
am just so grateful for each and every inspirational woman I have had the joy
to work with.
Best wishes
Claire
No comments:
Post a Comment