by matheen
We all know how challenging it is to be a working mom with a partner or a husband — but imagine — what more if you’re single and alone? Certainly, solo parenting has its own special and unique set of challenges. Below are a few lists of common issues that single moms share and struggle with: Continue reading
by Helga Kristin Fridjonsdottir
When I was growing up in Iceland, I was surrounded by powerful women. My mother came from the “West fjords” in northwest Iceland where life was harsh, nature was brutal and women often had to lead the fight for their families survival.
My grandmother on my father’s side came from the relatively isolated Snaefellsnes peninsula. In most coastal areas in Iceland, the main livelihood at the beginning of the 20th century came from fishing the treacherous North Atlantic. My great-grandfather, Adalsteinn, had bought his own fishing boat to provide for his family: my great grandmother Helga, for whom I am named, and my grandmother Kristin for whom I also named. Adalsteinn’s ship tragically went down on the coast, visible to the village where he had been born and in front of his wife and two-year-old daughter. Continue reading
OK – so now just two business concepts await examination under the microscope. Having started with seven concepts a few weeks back, one by one they had fallen down. Each time I had been grateful: who wants to spend months and thousands in pursuit of a business idea only to discover a fatal flaw later on. Letting each idea go was tough – especially if it was a hot favourite.
This week, the hot favourite definitely wasn’t idea 1: a one-stop home repair and improvement service. Interesting but not INNOVATIVE. It was idea 2: a solution to address that repeated Middle Manager engagement issue. Now there’s a market. Continue reading
In less than two months, American voters will go to the polls and choose their next Chief Executive. As can be imagined, Twitter feeds and news channels are all abuzz with arguments for and against the primary bets of the country: Hillary Clinton, a tenured politician and former FLOTUS who would be the first woman president if elected, and Donald Trump, a political newbie of dynamite character known for his businesses worth tens of billions.
I was 14,000 kilometers away from where the US Presidential Debate transpired on Tuesday morning (Asia Pacific time). I am not an American, nor am I in politics, but I was glued to CNN, waiting to see how the first of three debates would pan out. This is, after all, one of the most intense presidential campaigns ever run.
For obvious reasons, I listened to the debate intently as the United States is one of – if not THE – most powerful countries in the world and which almost has an iron-clad influence on international organizations. This influence is very important for emerging economies that depend heavily on foreign trade and lending. But more than this, I was intrigued at an individual level. Continue reading
“Few people attain great lives, in large part because it is just so easy to settle for a good life.” – James. C. Collins
Sports can teach us a lot about goals, determination and hard-work.
According to Nicole Haislett, Olympic Swimmer, the essence of hard work is: “identifying your personal limits, and then pushing past them, and then setting new barriers, and then … repeating the process again and again.” Knowing how hard she had worked enabled her to stand behind the starting block with the confidence that she was capable of winning. And she did: three gold medals! Continue reading
The high you can get off letting on your own ideas flow is like champagne… I fell completely in love with an art-based concept. It seemed to take on a life of its own by the hour!
It started with a thought: wouldn’t it be interesting to see feelings (like anger or serenity) be represented in a painting. Surely a series of these by one artist would get attention. There was something there.
What about if set titles were created and artists were asked to paint to those? Each title could start with the phrase “How it feels when….” and end with a description of situations that everyone can identify with, like “… you come home to a clean and tidy house”. The titles could also be about global issues: “… you hear that 50 people have been murdered in a New Orleans nightclub”, for example. What would the different interpretations look like? Continue reading
A week back, I had the pleasure of catching up with one of my friends who used to be one of the most demanding bosses I have had the privilege of working with. While giving each other personal updates, our discussion – as it always does – turned into reminiscing about the demanding yet fun environment that we had co-created with our entire employee base.
It was a fun environment, where the Power Distance Index (“PDI”, referencing Geert Hofstede) was very low across the organization, especially in the context of an emerging Asian operation market. In spite of the cordial relationships, everyone was crystal clear about the high performance standards and focused on bringing value to all stakeholders, especially the customers. Continue reading
“I don’t mind living in a man’s world as long as I can be a woman in it.” – Marilyn Monroe
Women leaders need to learn to manage without injecting gender into it. We’re all different! Being different from men (or other women) isn’t something to change or hide. Get over the idea that men and women are complete opposites, that we can never be similar.
There are times in the business world when we (and I mean: men and women) should be competitive or confrontational and there are times when we should seek compromise, cooperation and listen to our emotions. Most situations call for a blend of all of the above and most men and women have the ability to be all of these things. Continue reading
by Anja Uitdehaag and Mine Batiyel
“It takes courage to become who you really are” – E.E. Cummings
Living your dreams mean “knowing who you are, then, do what you need to do in order to have what you want.”
This might sound easier said than done.
Sometimes you may lose your way toward your dreams or even feel like you never had a path in the first place.
Did you ever feel like you were unsure about who you are? What you want? Not brave enough to be who you are or make your dreams happen?
Finding joy in Being You and Belief in Yourself determine how you will make your life journey.
The more often you are brave enough to express who you are, the easier it gets…
We believe that every woman can be successful in what she does if she can generate the courage to give it a go.
We are excited to announce the launch of FEMFLECTION.COM, a creative and inspirational personal development website for professional and dynamic women in business and arts of all ages and cultures. We combine motivational leadership with the inspirational creativity of art.
We believe that Art is a language and like any other language it is a vehicle of communication, i.e. self-expression of ideas and most inner/deep feelings. Art provides ample opportunity for imagination and creativity; as such it also turns out to be a wonderful way to tackle important work/life issues and share (self)-leadership lessons, thoughts & experiences.
It is our goal to help professional women to build their courage and put it to good use through reflection, overcoming self-limiting beliefs, gaining self-insight, identifying potential areas for development and pointing out critical success factors. We encourage you to dream big and take practical action to live a life that matters to you!
When you have a few minutes, take a look around at our web address Femflection.com and let us know what you think.
All sorts of ideas, old and new came up during that phase of excitement and discomfort:
What about an app that provides more detailed user ratings on local services than the usual ‘5 stars’, so that people wanting a prompt and tidy DIY guy (rather than the cheapest one), or a reflexology-based pedicure (rather than just great nails) can find exactly what they’re looking for?
What about helping Line Managers with team communications: a notorious requirement coming out of most employee surveys that never quite gets the attention it needs?
What about an art website with pre-set titles based on feelings, like frustration, excitement, anger? Artists could upload works created for those titles; they could be shared on social media with people liking the ones they most identify with, then judged, sold, merchandised…?
What about a home PA by-the-hour service? Imagine all those busy, dual income parents who would love to get a bit of help with running errands, searching for holidays, sitters for houses/pets/children, even getting presents for nieces and nephews – they’d want to call just a single number. Continue reading
Help you to succeed in life and work 