WOMEN'S DAY: EMPOWER YOURSELF

International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. IWD is celebrated every year on 8 March in the honor of its remarkable contribution to our society. This celebration aims to highlight women's rights and gender balance around the world.

International women’s day celebration initiative was started by the United States as National Women’s Day in the year 1909 to give them the right to cast their vote which the women of India already had. Women are known for playing multiple roles effortless, and thus, they are considered as the backbone of every society.  Women’s day is the day appreciates their efforts and to show women just how valuable they are in today’s society. Along with celebrating Women's Day, we should be working to empower ourselves. 

Let’s talk about something you can do to empower yourself and make a difference in the women around you and your life.

Stand Up for yourself

“Decorate your soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.”

Women have always been told to keep their opinions to themselves, never express feelings and to be ‘ladylike’, polite, agreeable, a people pleaser. Don’t be rude but express your feeling. It may feel uncomfortable at first to find your voice and stand up for yourself, but that discomfort is better than years of resentment and anger brewing inside you from all the times you have been too shy or afraid to stand up for yourself. Stand up for yourself like you would stand up for someone you love.

‘Take a stand for yourself and refuse to let people steal your joy today.’

Stop being a victim

Choose to be a warrior, not a victim. An empowered is nobody’s victim. Being empowered is all about being in control of your life and even when you feel victimized by someone or something, taking that situation, learning from it and turning it into something productive and constructive, that’s a warrior. It’s all about realizing no matter how down or helpless you feel, you always have a choice. This realization is one of the most empowering things of all. Even when you feel you don’t have a choice in a given situation, you at least always have a choice in the perspective you have on it and how you respond to it. Your perspective is something nobody can ever take from you. Speak up if you feel you are treated poorly due to your gender, color or culture. 

Stay away from the negative people

People, who are envious with you just because you do something to make your dreams come true, ignore them. Don't let their small thinking overwhelm you. Some people are not able to do anything in their life, but if you do something good, then they do not stop to speak ill about you. Stay away from these toxic people. We all have to deal with these types of people who treat us like they are superior to us, or who don’t respect us the way they should. That is unacceptable, no excuses. Cut those people out of your life. If you have to keep one in your life, limit time spent with that person. You don’t ever have to take crap from anyone. There is no need to even respond them because such people can also be eligible for mercy because their ego cannot see anyone else, especially women, getting success. 

Respect positive people

If you have those people in your life that are supportive and respectful and provide you with an environment that is conducive to feeling empowered, respect them. Don’t take them for granted.  It is important to always be around positive people that pick you up because negative people can drain your energy and nobody needs to waste their time being drained.

It’s very important to have support when you feel down and we need positive people to lean on sometimes. Positive and confident people are very precious. Surround yourself with these kinds of people because confidence is contagious. If you have that people in your life support them too because none of us can be successful without the help of others.

Have faith in you

Believe in your infinite potential. Your only limitations are those you set upon yourself.  -  Roy T.Bennet

Your opinion about yourself is the most important thing. It matters a lot. To support yourself, you have to maintain your positive attitude and empowered thoughts. Your mind is a powerful tool and believing you are powerful is being powerful. Replace your negative thoughts with positive ones, this is easier said than done and can take practice, but it all begins with having awareness of your thoughts and switching your negative thoughts to positive ones. It is extremely important to be optimistic and have faith in yourself and be your number one supporter. Love yourself enough to not allow negative people to hurt you.

Don’t feel guilty

Accepting that life is full of mistakes and changes is the part of being empowered. Don’t be afraid by making mistakes and don’t feel guilty if you have made one. Instead of that, learn from them and make positive changes for your future.

Keep learning

Knowledge has awesome power and the ability to grow the mind. Reading helps build confidence and knowing stuff is always useful. Educate yourself in any way you can. There are several ways to increase your knowledge on your own even you don’t have a formal education. You can read the books, or do research on the internet and many more. You can sign up a class of your interest. It can be as simple as knitting or as complex as physics. The point is to explore an area you have never explored before. Taking initiative to teach yourself something new is a greatest step you take to empower yourself. Never stop learning because a smart woman is an empowered woman. 

Let’s take this thing beyond International Women’s Day and think about how you are going to become a positively empowered being.

Happy Women’s Day!