The ‘Women who Empower’ summit held at Northeastern University was a room of change. Coming from different fields like magazine editing, sports, etc. ,where they have excelled, these women had some inspiring stories to tell about defeating patriarchy and achieving those dreams that they were crazy enough to see in their childhood.
Liukin, an Olympic gymnastic present at the event talked about how there was a moment in her life when she was standing on the podium, just like she had always wanted to. It was a frightening moment for her because one question daunted her – ‘I have achieved my lifelong wish. What now?’. That is when she realised that life is not about winning but about finding the passion in one’s life.
Robbie Myers, who was the former editor-in-chief at Elle magazine, talks about the diverse experiences she has had working in different kinds of magazines and how that helped her realise that each magazine comes with a different mission. It was important for her to decipher this to adapt herself to each workplace. She questions why there is no journalistic content in the magazines for women and how Elle in the US was distinct from the one in France, due to the impact it had on the people.
Another important participant of the event was Kaplan, the president and co-founder of M.Gemi, a luxury shoe company. She works on an online platform where they can get immediate response on what works and doesn’t work with the public, especially women. She talks about the importance of learning from one’s past experiences and bringing it to the current situation.
With a diverse range of women talking about their individual experiences, the summit opens doors for innovation and creativity. It shows that the glass ceiling is out there to break and how nothing should stand in the way for women to learn, create and grown.
N Malavika Mohan