There's an exclusionary aspect to Mother's Day. Yes, all mothers deserve their special day, but what about women who don't have children? What day in the calendar is set aside for women who have helped raise their siblings or nieces and nephews? Or the women who, while not having children of their own, have dedicated much of their professional lives to mentoring other women?
Mother's Day should celebrate the maternal and sisterly instincts in all their facets and guises—in particular, the sharing of wisdom among women. To mark this expanded view of Mother's Day we offer these words of wisdom from successful women, meant for other women who seek to scale common obstacles in their professional lives. All of these quotes were shared at the recent Matrix Awards luncheon, presented by New York Women in Communications.
1. "Find a job you can care about. Anybody can get a job you don't like." —Cynthia McFaddin, senior legal and investigative correspondent, NBC News
2. "Be a hope-aholic [with the long view]. True social change takes 100 years." —Gloria Steinem, journalist and activist
3. "There's no such thing as post-feminism. We'll be at this for generations. Let's keep dreaming of equality." —Eileen Naughton, VP, global accounts & global agencies, Google
4. "Too often women use the words 'I was just lucky' to explain their success, and say their success was 'improbable.' Instead, say that you are probable for greatness." —Wendy Clark, SVP, global sparkling brand center, The Coca-Cola Company
5. "Own your gift and share it with others." —Mary J. Blige, singer, songwriter, record producer, actress
6. "My mother allowed me to dream, and [like her] I always wanted women to be strong, fearless and powerful. And I want to pass this notion on, because when you pass things on to the next generation, you give love." —Queen Latifah, musician, actress, record-label president, author
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