On Thursday I attended a Rotman School of Management event featuring Sallie Krawcheck of Ellevest-fame. She was launching her new book Own It in Toronto, ahead of the New York launch – a win for Rotman and Toronto. Thanks to the Institute for Gender & the Economy and the Initiative for Women in Business for bringing her here.
Sallie was everything you’d expect, charming, funny, authentic, self-deprecating and quite comfortable in the spotlight. It was indeed inspiring to have here say, “it’s okay to be different than men”.
Using both quantifiable facts and personal anecdotes, she emphasized that women’s different take on things makes them exceedingly valuable to the conversation and results in positive outcomes for everyone.
Conversations like this inspire women to believe that they too can conquer the world, not by conforming or trying to act like men, but by being true to themselves. By being bold. By being courageous.
While Sallie Krawcheck is indeed all of those things, bold and courageous -- and for that she deserves our respect and admiration – she is also American. For me it begs the question “is being “bold” bred in the bones of Americans?”
It seems that our American sisters are more willing to push back against convention. Far more of them unapologetically and proudly raise the female flag and help other women rise up and do the same.
I would dearly love to see more Canadian women step up to the plate and for our institutions to do a better job of seeking them out, promoting them and valuing them as much as we do Americans.
Let’s find our Sallie, be inspired by her and Own It right here in Canada!
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