THE FEMININE REVOLUTION
Last week I was at a business lunch with a colleague and found myself on the verge of tears; the conversation triggered a painful memory from the past and left me feeling overwhelmingly emotional. A few years ago, I would have felt terribly embarrassed to find myself tearing up at lunch, but last week it just felt honest. After lunch I texted my dear friend, Amy Stanton, to tell her the story. Her response: “proud of you. everyone survived?” I couldn’t think of a better response. After all, Amy co-wrote an entire book that encourages women to use their femininity to be more authentic, honest and real in their lives, and even champions crying when feeling vulnerable.
Amy’s book, The Feminine Revolution, suggests that feminine traits which have often been disparaged as weaknesses — sensitivity, intuition, feeling emotional — are actually superpowers that we should embrace for a happier life. The book offers a set of principles that challenge the old and outdated perceptions of feminine traits and helps women shift into a space of confidence and authenticity. My favorite chapter is when Amy tells her story from early in her career when she cried at a lunch with her boss when her performance review didn’t go as planned. Amy reflects back on this story in The Feminine Revolution and explores a different way of looking at that lunch — could it have offered a chance for real, authentic connection with her boss? Is it possible that these moments of vulnerability offer us an opportunity to show who we really are, what we stand for, what we care about? I think so.
