Pre-COVID my life was always on the move. Speaking in different states, running workshops, training, working book events, consulting and more.
With all due respect for anyone who has suffered with COVID or had a family member/friend who has, I actually think of COVID as a blessing. It made me pause and, as Michael Gerber says in The E-Myth, it made me determine a better way to live.
I’ve spent the last year significantly changing many priorities in my life. I reflected on what kind of impact I have already made and, going forward, what kind of impact I want to make. This led me back to why I got into speaking in the first place.
I wanted to be the female speaker I never had.
In four years of university, I never once had a female speaker come to my campus. I just wanted to get my voice out there and represent the woman who I wish I had as a speaker when I was in college, so I started doing speaking events free of charge. And then I realized, “Wow, you CAN get paid to speak!” But I wouldn’t have known because no one told me that speaking could be your career, much less one where you can earn a living.
I loved speaking, and I built my reputation and business around it. At my peak, I was doing 70 events a year. I was doing both college and corporate speaking. When COVID hit, I transitioned my whole business to be accessible virtually. Since March 2020, I’ve been doing virtual speaking events, workshops, training and, at the beginning of 2021, we launched the UNprofessional podcast.
We’re about a year and a half away from the start of COVID. Here’s how it went for me:
- I built the platform.
- I have the book.
- I have the brand.
- I get paid to speak.
- I have an agency.
- I have products, a speaker profile, pricing modules and consulting.
- I have a podcast.
I have not held back. I got what I wanted by being bold and stepping out of my comfort zone. But what if other women could have this too?
I’ve realized that in my own speaking career, I’ve gotten everything I’ve ever dreamed of, but I haven’t changed the statistic: I simply AM the statistic.
And now I’m asking myself, what would it look like if I could really change the statistic?
So that women aren’t tokenized.
What if I helped more women do what I do?
When I imagine the world I WANT to see, it’s one where more women are speaking their mind, sharing their expertise, taking their power and owning their voice.
A world where being a woman in a space isn’t seen as a unique differentiator; equality is the standard.
I don’t want to secure more speaking events just to fill someone’s roster as a female speaker. I’m tired of hearing that. The voices of female thought leaders, consultants, keynotes and programs are important.
This is why I am going to build a program that’s the first of its kind: one that brings more female leaders in business into the realm of thought leadership.
The world needs more female thought leaders. People are yearning for more female speakers and thought leaders in business, but they don’t know where to find them. More women are capable of putting their ideas out there and owning their voice/expertise. If they get their message out, they can make more of an impact than they ever could’ve believed possible before entering the world of thought leadership.
You have thought leaders in sales, marketing, online businesses, operations, production, creative arts, manufacturing, HR and customer design, to name a few. All these categories are types of verticals that you can see a thought leader rise above. A thought leader is someone who has the courage to not just do the work, but guide and lead the work that changes the face of a vertical in business. There are many women out there who are experts in their own field who are more than qualified to be thought leaders.
It can be you.
You can be someone like my friend and colleague Courtney Branson who has a great reputation and credibility in creating Square Root’s award-winning culture. She eventually left the company when it was acquired and is now a consultant, coach, thought leader and her own boss at Courtney Branson Consulting. Courtney’s journey proves that you can be a thought leader while still working in a company and you can be a thought leader on your own as well.
A thought leader can take many forms, and I am here to guide you in this journey.
For your future teams and kids, if you think that business deserves to and can be better with more female thought leaders, I am inviting you on this journey with me. I’m going to be launching a six-week accelerator program for how to become a female thought leader in business. It will support you in building your platform and enhance the basic components of credibility, brand and programs.
Come with us as we strive for more because we deserve more. I’m here to tell you that you’re allowed to want a world where women have a say in the direction we’re headed. Shoot me a DM on LinkedIn, and connect with me if we’re not already. I look forward to working with you and building a future that we’ll all be proud of!
In love and respect,
Hilary Corna
