I'm Starting a Gang.

I'm Starting a Gang.

A Girl Gang to be clear.

With March being the celebration of women in history month, I am experiencing an overwhelming increase in requests to speak at women's conferences and inside those organizations that have dedicated initiatives for women.

This makes me so happy because it demonstrates an opportunity in the workplace for women to bond and come together for a purpose. There is nothing that I love doing more than surrounding myself with other women who are encouraging of others, growth-minded, inspiring, and kind. 

In a professional context, I do my best to vary those who are around me to avoid peers that have the same strengths as I do. In contrast, I do need people who complement my weaknesses, but it's key they share the same core values as I do. I began building my "tribe" about 5 years ago when I decided to grow exponentially in my personal development. This required me to look at who I was surrounding myself with and strive to gain some balance. It was a bit of a strategic exercise.

The one thing I learned early in that growth process was women could be cruel. I found out very quickly that not everyone will be supportive of you as you grow, and not everyone wants to go where you are going. I lost a few women along the way whom I considered friends. They were not welcoming of the fact that I was going places and shut me out of their lives, causing me to feel unwanted, unheard, and honestly, just lonely.

So, in the time I had spent feeling lonely, I started making some decisions for myself.

 If I wanted to be better, I had to be around people who were better than me.

 The profile was simple. They had to be more successful and about 10 years ahead of me in growth. I began paying close attention to those women who were doing big things, building great companies, and building communities. It was initially intimidating to ask them for their time because I knew how busy they were, but if I wanted to do big things, I had to put my big girl pants on and step up.

As a woman, I think it is so important to connect with other successful women who inspire us. Women are often at the center of family life, viewed as the pillars of a family, providing care for their children, aging parents and often the wider community. In all of that chaos, it's easy to forget the importance of "re-nourishing" ourselves in both physical and mental capacities.

It can be a cruel world out there and there are a lot of women who want to build relationships but are too afraid to ask in fear of rejection. Maybe they feel other women are just as busy as they are so they don't want to add one more thing to their plate.

Here are my 3 tips for building your Girl Gang:

1. Seek out those people you admire. Just ask! Don't be afraid to ask for advice. You may not get everyone to say yes to a "mentor meeting" or call, but you would be surprised how many will make the time. Just remember, 90% of people have great intentions, yet only 10% act on those intentions. So your odds are pretty strong already that not many are asking.  
2. Amplify other women warriors. If you see another woman doing something great, make certain you tell her. Be supportive and let her know you see her shining and you appreciate her effort. Everyone can always use a little encouragement and you are likely to be the only person speaking up. When other women support each other, it doesn't just stop there, it's contagious. 
3. Set the example. You live up to your core values through the behaviors you display and people do take notice. When you treat other women kindly and offer to help, other women notice. Don't wait for someone else to do something. If you want to make a change in your community then you need to start first. Mass movements never start with a mass, they start with one single person. If you want to see more women support each other, make the first move.

If you are interested in joining my "girl gang" send me a message. 

If there are enough of us, we may end up getting jackets. 

I believe in you. 

 To your growth,

Kelly Merbler