You’ve spent much of your career helping women navigate ambition and personal growth. How have conversations about success and fulfillment evolved over the years?
When my book came out, it was really for millennial women who were redefining ambition, success and what I call “the big life” on their own terms. The book has been out for almost 10 years now, and what’s been so exciting is watching this generation of women continue to redefine power and ambition as they’ve stepped into their own.
The more we can chart a course for ourselves and ask, “What is meaningful to me?” the closer we get to building the lives we actually want. Someone recently asked me if ambition has become a dirty word. And I said, pick another word if you need to: freedom, control over your life, wanting what you want. That is all ambition.
We can’t talk enough about fulfilling your destiny and becoming the woman you are meant to be.
Many women reach a point in midlife where they reassess their careers and priorities. What advice would you offer someone considering a major professional pivot?
There’s nothing worse than the feeling of being stuck. If you’re in a career, a relationship, a situation or even a city that’s not serving you, you only get one life. Make the change.
But making the change doesn’t mean you have to blow everything up overnight. Do the research. Start having the conversations. Take small steps toward what’s next. I often talk about “10 minutes to togetherness” — just giving yourself a little bit of time to move closer to what you want. That could mean reaching out to someone, researching an idea, writing down what you’re craving or simply admitting to yourself that something needs to shift.
The important thing is to start.
Through your work mentoring and supporting women, what qualities do you see in those who are able to create meaningful, purpose-driven careers?
We all start out wanting to change the world and find our purpose. No one wants to just move papers from one side of the desk to the other. The challenge is asking yourself: What do I want to do? Who do I want to be?
Purpose doesn’t mean your work can’t also be self-fulfilling. In fact, it should give your life meaning. It’s not just about getting a big paycheck or achieving a certain title. It’s about aligning your work with your values and understanding what you want your contribution to be.
The women who create meaningful careers are the ones who are willing to keep asking those questions — and then make choices that bring them closer to the answers.
How do you find flow — that moment, or ability, to be fully immersed and present in the moment — in your life?
I actually have a flow bracelet. Flow is my word of the year.
Right now, I really feel like I am in my flow. I’ve been pointing myself in this direction for a long time, and suddenly I’m starting to see all of the dots connect. That, to me, is flow. It’s when the work you’ve been doing, the conversations you’ve been having and the direction you’ve been moving in all start to come together.
That’s where I am right now, and it feels powerful.
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