Conversations are the key to greater resilience and equality for women
South African women still face tremendous challenges in their daily lives, from personal safety to access to education and work opportunities and appropriate healthcare. Women are still more likely than men to be unemployed. According to Statistics South Africa, 31 percent of men are unemployed compared to 34 percent of women. Black women are by far the most vulnerable, with an unemployment rate of 38 percent.
Change starts with having open, vulnerable conversations with people you trust
These are structural issues, backed up by some troubling attitudes. Only 56 percent of men believe earning an income is the best way for women to be truly independent. And nearly two-thirds of South Africans said that women earning more than their partners would almost certainly be an issue.
Statistics such as these are infuriating for what they mean to the personal, lived experience of individual women, who are constantly barred from opportunities and realising their full potential and ambition. On a macro level, they are also deeply troubling for South African society, which is impoverished by the lack of diversity, imagination and creativity women could bring to the table if they were supported and encouraged…READ ON
How to Develop Extraordinary Resilience
What determines whether we take these setbacks in stride or let them bring us down is something psychologists call “resilience.” It’s the ability to bounce back from setbacks and adapt, learn, and persevere.
When someone is being rude to you, do you notice that they may also be in pain? Do you notice your own humanity and compassion?
I’ve found resilience to be an important factor in my own journey, from struggling through financial and health changes over the years to navigating the scary and uncertain waters of running my own business.
Resilience has allowed me to run several marathons despite injuries, write numerous books amid personal challenges, face a declining income with a positive attitude, raise six kids (with help from my wife) no matter what difficulties they face, and deal with deaths in the family with an open heart, finding compassion for my own grief and helping my family members in the midst of theirs.
None of this is to brag, but to show the power of simple resilience…READ ON
