This week I have decided to dedicate my article to women who inspire me both professionally and personally. I find it incredibly important to find role models that I can learn from and look towards as models for my own growth in the workplace and in my personal life. I highly recommend check out these Girlbosses in further detail, as they are each breaking boundaries int heir respective fields and one can learn a lot from their paths, experiences and what they have to say!
First off, Alexandra Friedman and Jordana Kier are two girlbosses who have co-founded the company LOLA, which delivers all-natural tampons directly to your door. Both women up and quit their high paying corporate jobs in order to follow their passion: to help women have an easier, stress-free period, while allowing women to live healthier lives through their organic products. Alexandra and Jordana are single-handedly re-writing the all-encompassing narrative that is associated with periods, by allowing women the transparency and access to all-natural feminine hygiene products. Their innovation, passion for entrepreneurship, and work to improve women’s daily lives is incredibly inspiring to me. Personally, I have always been out-spoken about the corrupted feminine hygiene industry and I love seeing these women making huge changes to this problem. And professionally, I am also deeply influenced by their story, as I would love to pursue a career path that deals with the advancement of women and also involves an aspect of innovation.
Alexandra Friedman and Jordana Kier featured with their product, LOLA brand tampons.
Secondly, Malala Yousafzai is a bosslady that always has, and always will, inspire me to the core. A year younger than myself, Malala has risked her life in order to receive an education, and to speak out against the injustices that plague women worldwide. Daring to defy the Taliban and their oppressive acts against women, Malala was shot in the head for her campaigning girl’s education; this event allowed her to create a massive impact worldwide. Her role as an activist and leader towards allowing everyone the basic right to education has made her one of the most important leaders in our present world.
Barbara Kruger
In addition, Barbara Kruger is one of my personal favorite artists and boss ladies. Kruger’s provocative works address cultural constructions of power, identity and sexuality, and make her one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. For example, her poster created for the 1989 Women’s March on Washington, “Your Body is a Battleground”, in
support of legal abortion, has become an anthem for feminism and continues to be extremely relevant in
today’s current world. As an artist myself, I hope that one day I am able to create art that can inspire and connect groups of people worldwide.
Finally, Erin Schrode, a citizen activist and social entrepreneur, is a leading voice on sustainability and social impact for millennials and is a vocal advocate for environmental action, public health, and equal justice. She just ran an unprecedented campaign for US Congress in California at the age of 25. Since co-founding Turning Green in 2005, she has developed eco education and action platforms to inspire, educate, and mobilize millions of students and the global public with this non-profit and beyond. This social entrepreneur and community organizer champions civic leadership, conscious living, and environmental stewardship worldwide, launching a youth education project in Haiti, writing curriculum for an eco center for Palestinian, Israeli, and Jordanian students, developing recycling infrastructure in Ghana, and telling the stories of Syrian, Iraqi and Afghan refugees in the Mediterranean and Native Americans at Standing Rock while working in solidarity on the ground. Erin Schrode is from my hometown of Marin County, CA, and I had the opportunity to work on her campaign for Congress! Seeing her in action, and having achieved so much at the age of 25, is sometimes hard to believe, and she functions as a very important role model in my life currently.