Being a female athlete is both challenging, competitive, and exhausting. Fighting for success in an industry that’s heavily dominated by men can be extremely discouraging, but also rewarding in the long run. To empower women in sports and athletics, women around the world started to implement and spread positive reinforcement while rooting for gender equality in sports.
This issue is surprisingly receiving a lot of support especially in industries surrounding basketball and football. Figures like LeBron James and Chris Paul, who are professional basketball players, have continuously supported the WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association) by showing up and supporting women and their careers. Media coverage has also picked up and on famous tennis players such as Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, while supporting and congratulating them on their achievements.
It brings immense joy and hope that multiple groups of people are starting to pay attention and support women in this challenging industry, however women that are pursuing their dreams still come to battle with daily inequality. Nonetheless, the good news is that supporting women in sports is also a way to simultaneously promote equal economic opportunities for all genders. One of the main issues that women face from the standpoint of their career is that they get paid significantly less than male athletes. Did you know that the average salary of an NBA male basketball player is 7.7 million dollars, while the average salary of a WNBA female basketball player is only 75,000 dollars? This indicates that there is a huge gender pay gap – and we see it in full effect in the professional basketball industry.
Obviously, battling the gender pay gap is a global complex problem that is rooted into the socio-economic systems that are embedded into our lives. However, there are multiple small ways through which you can show your support. One of them would be to simply watch female athletes as much as you watch male athletes. By following female sports pages, athletes, tournaments and other organizations, you are not only supporting them, but also convincing other people to support them as well.
This is what happened with LeBron James and the WNBA. When James started to use his platform to support female basketball athletes, other people started to follow his steps and do the same. Eventually, it turned out that celebrities, influencers, athletes and some of the general public even started to show up to female basketball games to support the industry. All of this happened because of one person. This ultimately indicates that supporting a cause which you are passionate about doesn’t only help the community, but it also motivates others to follow your footsteps and do the same.
#womeninsports #genderequality #genderpaygap #playlikeawoman #empowerwomen

The topic of feelings and emotions is definitely one of the most complicated subjects to exist. Sometimes, it even gets labeled as a problematic, unnecessary, drama-filled field that is “a waste of time” to explore or cope with. These are some of the labels that women receive when they show their vulnerable and “real” side, and it has to stop immediately.
Women all around the globe strive to restore equality between the two sexes by supporting their own gender. With this, they must aspire to stand up for themselves and fight for what is right by using their voice and expressing their feelings. However, other people find this to be disturbing or threatening to them. This is why women are forced to display a less enhanced, more dialed-back version of themselves and their personality while refraining from speaking on subjects as freely as they would like. And this concerns me.
The ability to express opinions and ideas freely without judgment or degradation is a standard that must always be fulfilled regardless of your location or situation. For example, the workforce is one major field that fails to reinforce this aspect for females, as well as build an environment in which everyone feels respected and equally valued. There tend to be frequent incidents in which women feel that their ideas are often neglected, dismissed, or not taken as seriously as they would’ve hoped.
One way to encourage positive change is by letting women express their feelings! As simple as it seems, listening to someone’s point of view makes them feel like a valued member of that community within a much more accepting environment. This is what we should strive to transform the world to be like – a representation of an environment where ideas are always encouraged and never degraded to be seen as “less than”.
As much as it is exhausting and tedious, it is all in your hands as global citizens to turn your community into a welcoming and inclusive safe space for all sexes, ages, races, and ethnicities. Let this be the joint work that we owe to the community of women who stand behind us, to empower them and provide a better life to all women around the globe.
#emotions #expressyourfeelings #empowerwomen #striveforbetter

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Women empowerment is a well-known sphere with a supportive community of people. Millions of supporters positively reinforce its principles daily and preach the most intellectual ideas, in order to speak up about topics they feel passionate about. However, do you ever catch yourself wondering how you could support other young girls and women in their journey to serve as global activists? Below are the 3 easiest and quickest ways that you can serve as an ally and supporter of the women empowerment movement in your community, as well as on a global scale.
Nearly everyone shops at fast-fashion stores nowadays, most without even being aware of it. Fast fashion is a term used to describe cheap, popular stores that replicate high-end fashion trends and sell their products at a substantially lower price. The main reason why this is a problem is because it pollutes the environment through carbon emissions. However, secondary problems result in no given credit to the original producers of the clothes, as well as the profits not going to good causes that are worth supporting. In response to this, you can shop at stores that are ran by small-business owners, which you can locate on social media, through friends, or even just by driving through town and paying attention to the boutiques on the streets. With this, not only are you getting unique and fancy clothes, but you are also supporting your community and giving money to people who use it for a better cause than just to simply produce more clothes.
Another way to show women that you are a close ally who supports important causes can be done by simply donating to organizations. To support women and girls who are in crisis, donate to stop and minimize problems such as: abuse, child labor, child marriage and human/sex trafficking. It always comes as a big surprise that anywhere from 600,000 to 800,000 people get trafficked across the borders annually, which is a heartbreaking statistic, as well as a neglected problem. Always remember to take all parts of your global community into consideration and encourage others to willingly put effort into ending an extremely wide-spread, serious, disgusting problem.
Sometimes, showing support can be easier than you make it out to be. The third way to support this cause is by showing gratitude and telling women, young girls, parental figures and even workers that they matter and that you believe in them. Sure, it sounds simple, but this is arguably one of the most effective and easiest ways to show your support to the ones you value most. Showing kindness and being a source of peace and positivity in your community reinforces standards that others then begin to follow too. Next thing you know, you influenced a whole chain of people to be kind and supportive throughout their days. Regardless of anyone’s situation, a few kind words a day can truly motivate and make someone feel appreciated, which is such a beautiful and pleasurable experience in general. Knowing that people support you even at a distance may be all the reassurance that one needs to accomplish their dreams – be that positive change today, tomorrow, and for the rest of your beautiful life.
#worldpeace #trafficking #womenempowerment #fastfashion #community #respect #gratitude

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A woman’s role in the family is one of the primary aspects that determine her future. There are also a lot of stereotypes to break regarding a woman’s role in a marriage that was established thousands of years ago in history, such as that the function of women is to bear children, cook, and clean. These standards established for women definitely put a limit on what we can do throughout the course of our lives. This is also important because it targets a woman’s freedom – something that is crucial for one to have in order to live the life that one desires. These marital roles also influence the career paths of many women because they are required to stay home and take care of kids, while the man builds a career for himself.
Back in time, women were expected to spend the majority of their time doing chores around the house such as cooking and cleaning, as they were also required to take care of the children. Meanwhile, it became a general rule that the husband gets the final say on nearly everything. Thus, these gender roles severely limited the freedom of women. Even nowadays, this unwritten rule is generally followed in traditional households – with the husband bringing in the majority of the income, and the woman doing the majority of the household work.
Some statistics are that 66% of the workforce consisted of men, and the rest was women as of January 2018. Women also make up the majority of the part-time workforce, which indicates that, because of the other duties they were required to fulfill, they did not have enough time to work a full-time job and develop a career.
A woman’s role in the family is majorly predetermined due to the social norms set back in the day, and the only way to achieve equality between the two sexes is to break these falsely set standards. We must seek to change the stereotypes surrounding women and our culture immediately. This is the only way that we can ensure equal opportunity and treatment of all genders, as well as ensure a fair shot at life for everyone in our global community.
#breakstereotypes #unitetheworld #workingmom #supermom #empowerwomen

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When you hear the name “Rosa Parks”, it speaks for itself in exponential volumes and carries a symbolic importance behind it. Rosa Parks was an American civil rights activist who was born on February 4th 1913 in Alabama, and passed away on October 25th 2005 after living a long, eventful and influential life, most known for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Rosa Louise McCauley grew up in Tuskegee, Alabama, and at 19 years old made a move to Montgomery with her husband Raymond Parks. During this time, parks worked numerous jobs such as file clerk, insurance saleswoman, and seamstress, thanks to which the married couple lived in tolerable conditions. Consequently, Rosa Parks and her husband were actively engaged in civil rights work throughout the whole of their adult lives, in hopes of bettering life for African Americans in the South. Rosa Parks joined the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and worked as the secretary from 1943 to 1956. Simultaneously, Parks also found the time to do volunteer work for the African Methodist Church and get involved in the Montgomery Voter’s League, which was dedicated to increasing the voter rights of African Americans. Another notable action that Parks has taken was her attendance to an educational workshop in Tennessee, which taught skills and strategies that would help fight for racial equality specifically through school integration amongst black people.
Rosa Parks is historically most known for her famous Montgomery Bus Boycott which played a major part in the on-going fight for social justice and racial equality. Rosa Parks particularly despised the Montgomery bus system and the application of Jim Crow laws within it. The “rules” stated that the white sections were at the front of the bus and black sections were at the back of the bus on every public transport. When all of the seats were taken in the white section, white people could request a black person to move further down the bus, even if that meant that they would have to stand. Essentially, the law stated that black people were required to give their seat to white people. There were even arrests that followed, when some black citizens refused to follow these rules, however the argument that this was dehumanizing was unrightfully ignored. On December 1st 1955, Parks got on the bus at the end of the day to come home from job as a seamstress, and sat in the colored section. Shortly after, a white man approaches her and demands her to move so he could sit down in her seat. Rosa Parks fearlessly refuses and as a result gets arrested. After being taken to the police station and thrown into prison, she had the ability to make one phone call – she decided to call the leader of the Montgomery NAACP. After this action was taken, the news spread quickly throughout the black community and a meeting was therefore called amongst 50 local black leaders. This was all followed by a boycott on the bus regimes on December 5th. This caused great financial implications to the bus company because about 70% of the population that used city busses regularly was black. To boycott, the black population car-pooled, used taxis or walked instead, which greatly decreased the amount of people who used the busses anymore. The Montgomery bus boycott lasted 382 days, after which the Court ruling forced the bus company to change its rules and laws due to the financial complications it caused. This was considered a meaningful win for the African American population, after all the laws were lifted.
Despite the continuous threats that Rosa Parks got, her bus boycott inspired more protests against racial segregation and inequality not only in Montgomery, but throughout other locations in the South. She even moved to Detroit, where she founded the “Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute of Self-Development” in 1987 that provided career training for young black people. Her goal was to educate the younger population about the Civil Rights Movement in America, in which she was so heavily involved in. This shows that the events in her life all added up and circled back to the on-going and tough fight against racial prejudice, which she contributed majorly to. Her success may be tracked through rewards and personal benchmarks, such as writing her own biography or being awarded the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal of Honor, however her intentions were always bigger than herself and centered thoroughly on bettering the community around her. Characterized by her selfless personality, Rosa Parks left an unforgettable mark on the Civil Rights Movement and helped better the world step by step for the future generations of the African American population. She was the epitome of the Civil Rights Movement and inspired many to use their voices in order to stand up against the unrightful laws put in place by the government system. Rosa Parks taught and motivated the African American population to never settle for anything less than equal treatment, freedom and social justice they deserved in America, and to never stop fighting for what they believed is right in our society and the rest of the world.

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The court case of Roe vs. Wade took place on December 13th, 1971, then was consequently reargued on October 11th, 1972; the final decision of this case was reached only by January 22nd of the year 1973. This court case was taken to Supreme Court and essentially argued the right and freedom of a pregnant woman to choose whether she should have an abortion without strict regulations of the government. The 14th amendment of the US Constitution was continuously mentioned and mainly referred to during the hearing, where the question emerged: “To what extent should women have the right to privacy when it comes to them and their child’s well-being?”.
This event is historically significant because it displayed a great example in which women’s rights were reinforced, and, in my humble opinion, the right outcome was reached. It displays a step in the right direction not only for amending the laws of the US Constitution, but for humanity and the rest of the population of the world. By taking a step in the right direction, it brings the world one step closer to giving women their deserved rights to do what they want with their body – as this tough and personal decision must be up to them to make. This connects to the other parts of my research because it supports and reinforces ideas that other pieces of evidence displayed and advocated for. It shows how history rubbed off on multiple groups of people such as governors, film producers and authors; this ultimately proves the power of one single decision of the Supreme Court.
The big idea that is associated with this event are women’s rights – the court case argues for women to have the right to be in full control over decisions that have to do with their own bodies. This is culturally significant because it rubbed off on a lot of American citizens, but similarly the rest of the world as this case became known to the general public. As mentioned earlier, it pushed humanity to give women a chance to be heard, since Roe was the voice of many other women who did not have a voice to express their own concerns and opinions about the discrimination they have experienced in society. We remember it because of the tough but necessary conversations it started for the government officials, but also changed the perspective of many individuals to support women in this cause. This event not only affected people who lived through it, but also influenced the future of younger generations. People who lived through this event witnessed a shift in the ideas and demands that resurfaced politically and socially.
Politically – justice and simple understanding of human decency was now strongly demanded of the government to amend its laws and possibly make new ones to protect the right to have the choice and privacy for all women when it came to abortions. Socially – this court case proved that a women’s decision to have an abortion should be her own “right”.
By introducing these new ideas to society, it opened up room for discussion to normalize tough conversations that will put pressure on society to look at this issue with an open mind from a different perspective, that will allow women to receive the respect and rights that they have always deserved. Finally, this court case had an even bigger impact on people today because it made the US Supreme Court recognize the constitutional right to abortion in 1973 and moving forward.

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For the longest, the question, “should women be able to decide what to do with their bodies?” remains surprisingly unanswered, as the answer is right in front of you – yes, because it’s her body! Today, I will analyze two government actions that challenged this viewpoint and demonstrate why this is an invalid approach to this problem in the modern society.
The Human Life Protection Act, also known as the Alabama Abortion Act, was made official on May 15th, 2019 in Alabama. This act was set to establish a near-total ban on abortions throughout the whole state. This act also states that any doctor who attempts to perform an abortion illegally may receive a punishment as bad as life in prison. Although many tried to make amendments to this law by making exceptions for cases of rape and incest, these requests were rejected. This law bans abortions at any stage of the pregnancy; however it has some minimal exceptions to it. Cases in which abortions would be legal in the state of Alabama would be if the baby has fatal medical conditions, or in which the woman could not safely give birth (giving birth would put her at risk of dying). This decision ultimately came about due to the high demand of the Republican political party. The bare fact that the Vice President of the United States (at that time), Pence, applauded the state of Alabama after this law was put in act, proves how this opinion was mostly represented by the Republicans that resided in the United States. My reaction to the role that the government played is extremely negative because it immensely disgusts and disappoints me that this event occurred. I find it unfair and hollow that (mostly) men, such as Vice President Pence himself, support the idea of deciding what to do with women’s bodies as if it were their own. It’s disappointing and upsetting to see society take a step backwards in this case, especially after all the efforts that were assembled in the world to fight this cause. This can even be shown in a graph that compares the abortion restrictions versus protections throughout the years in the United States (shown below). To conclude, this event makes me immensely angry and emotional that so much support from the side of the Republicans was shown for this movement, and how society failed to see the wrongs in establishing this law.
The “Fetal Heartbeat Bill” is one of the most controversial laws in the United States that only a few states have passed. This law states that abortion becomes illegal after a fetal heartbeat can be detected – which can be appear as soon as 6 weeks into the pregnancy of a woman. These bills were proposed by several states in 2018 and 2019, but were only validated in Ohio, Georgia, Louisiana, and Missouri. In states such as Iowa, Kentucky and Mississippi, these laws were debated upon but ultimately rejected by courts. This debate has continuously stuck around for nearly a decade due to the controversy surrounding this topic. It was argued that after a fetal heartbeat could be heard, the fetus would be officially considered to be a “living person”. On one hand, this can be a valid claim, however, many women can still be unaware of their pregnancy 6 weeks into it, therefore it would be unfair to them. Despite all of this, it is still an on-going and continuous debate that remains without a concrete resolution or agreement reached. My reaction to this bill is mixed because I am able to see the issue and interpret the arguments from both sides. Even though the arguments are both valid, it makes me question what are the exact qualities make the fetus a living person? Where and when does that shift happen from an embryo to a child? Although these topics are all still up for debate, I support the decisions of states that agreed to block the law by court order, as shown on the map (attached below). Even though this is a development in the opposite direction that forces the government to try and put restrictions back on abortions, it gives me hope that many courts are denying states the rights to make this an official law and is primarily giving women the right to decide their own plan of action with their bodies, their futures, and their lives as well.
Hopefully, after carefully interpreting just two examples of laws that were passed, you have gained another perspective upon the issue. Despite what your view upon the controversy is, it is important to be empathetic of women and their issues or situations that they are unable to talk about yet.

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This Ted Talk is about how anger is an emotion that is viewed purely depending on race and sex of a person. There is a stereotype that women are angry, irrational, hysterical and unrealistic – leading them to think falsely of what they are actually feeling. However, when a man is angry, he is assertive and dominant – anger is by all means justified.
As girls grow up, they learn to bite their tongue and not address certain things or speak on certain situations they find themselves in. This is due to the fear of how we will be looked at by society. Also, it slowly gets engraved into our minds that we should second-guess the emotions that we are feeling because they might be “invalid” or “irrational”. The truth is that anger is an emotion that is not good or bad – it’s just a response of our minds to certain situations that we appear in. When women express what makes them mad – what anger conveys – people tend to respond to it with anger, which is very illogical and annoying. There is a quote that I think summarizes the main idea of the Ted Talk: “anger confirms masculinity, and it confounds femininity”.
The viewpoint of the speaker is that women are put at a disadvantage through the views of other when they express the same angry emotions that men do. I know this because she is a woman herself, that speaks upon personal experiences and different instances that she has come across, that help confirm this unfair stereotype when it comes to women being angry.
With that being said, I fully agree with the viewpoint of the speaker as it reflects double standards that have followed around humanity for way too long. The fact that it’s a subconscious response that people have to women being angry is what makes it harder to battle with, however understanding that it exists and has existed is the first step to tackling this complex issue.
In order to battle this problem, us, women, have to keep standing up for what we believe in. We have to keep getting angry and keep using our voices whenever we feel like we need to for our peace – not for the benefit of other people around us. It is also important to not dismiss your own emotions as keeping them in is what would cause greater personal problems.
The speaker mentioned that anger that women feel within even causes physical pain and sickness – whether it being short term or long term. It especially affects the death rates of black women with cancer, which is a shocking statistic. In short, feeling anger can reflect your physical well-being, and women are more prone to this because they feel more anger than men since they are taught to hold it in them instead of letting it out or talking about it.

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Did you know that currently, women make up only 8% of the CEOs of the Fortune 500 companies? That is only 41 female CEOs out of the 500 total positions – a terribly small amount! After analyzing these mind-blowing statistics, the question arises: what causes this uneven distribution within certain occupations in business?
The short answer would be because of the male-dominated business environment and gender bias. Let’s take Lisa Su, for example, the highest-paid female CEO within the Fortune 500 companies, who manages Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) since 2014. Su is a prime example of a woman fighting to break stereotypes and achieve equality in the global workforce.
There are proven studies that stereotypes play a role in an unconscious bias that ultimately defines the reason as to why the business industry is so male-dominated, and why we don’t encounter many female CEOs. An unconscious bias is a subconscious idea or understanding that one might gain because of processing information quickly and not paying enough time to fully understand a concept. In this case, gender bias plays a huge role in unequal female representation throughout corporations and the gender pay gap.
Ultimately what happens is that these predetermined biases influence executives to elect a CEO that is a man and not a woman. When a woman is put into a position to lead, she often gets labeled as emotional, manipulative, selfish, bossy, and rude even if her approach is identical to a man’s. These are some of the unspoken discriminations that happen in a work environment dominated by females. These unfair labels make it harder for a woman to pursue their desired career paths as their gender unconsciously puts them at an unfair disadvantage. However, with all of the odds standing against women, we will never fail to put up a fight.
Lisa Su, for example, believes that social inequality, as well as racism, will only continue to form a bigger divide within genders if it doesn’t get addressed. However, she does recognize that this is a big issue to address, and that change will not happen overnight in the business industry and workforces in general. Therefore, it is important to remember that we must help bring out the good qualities in our co-workers if we wish to reverse the changes and ultimately achieve an equitable environment for women within all professions.

#freewoman #successfulwoman #thefutureisfemale #genderequality #genderreform #fightforrights #respectwomen #femaleworkforce

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The gender pay gap has been a growing global issue for women and it is time to solve it once and for all. Not only is it discouraging to younger women, but also immoral and unethical to current female employees in the workforce. However, how did this issue even come to exist?
It all ages back to parental roles thousands of centuries ago, where the men would do more physical work and earn money while women would babysit the kids and complete their other motherly duties. Ever since certain stereotypes emerged, men and women have been funneled into different industries according to their gender. However, within their certain specialties, men still get paid more regardless of the field. Do you understand why this is particularly upsetting to women?
Furthermore, a male’s annual salary is 21% higher than a woman’s annual salary when both genders work the same job. If the statistics are so evident, why is this issue still being overlooked and ignored? Not only is this damaging to the female working community in general, but it also discourages younger women who are starting to explore the workforce as early as 14 years old. This imposes challenges on young women, who start to experience the direct effects of the gender pay gap in real-world situations. Even though this is the reality that all women entering the workforce experience, it can be slowly reversed.
In cases of injustice or unfairness, always speak up about what is bothering you. It might not be the most comfortable conversation to have, however you will be advocating for a better future not only for you but half of the global population. With this, you will also be setting a prime example of how to battle inequality step by step to women of all ages, thus raising their hope and expectations more, ultimately encouraging them to strive for greater achievements.
It is important to neglect your feelings of embarrassment and stand up for equal treatment amongst all genders, and encourage teamwork and collaboration instead of competition and conflict not only within certain workforces but in organizations around the whole globe.

#payequal #freewoman #fightforrights #thefutureisfemale

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When you think of successful celebrities who also have kids, your mind immediately jumps to the Kardashians, but more specifically Kylie Jenner. This influencer and young entrepreneur has over 245 million followers on Instagram and a net worth of 700 million dollars, making her one of the most famous people on the planet right now. In 2018, Kylie Jenner gave birth to her first child, Stormi Webster, at 20 years old.
Previously to her childbirth, Kylie Jenner took the initiative to be very secretive about her pregnancy and the process that came with it. She adopted a “privacy please” policy where she was very strict about posting any pictures of Stormi, her daughter. She even dialed down her presence on social media, and it is now known that this was due to the pregnancy.
When Kylie Jenner gave birth, there was inevitable controversy about her parenting. She got multiple hate comments about just using Stormi as an accessory for Instagram pictures, after posting pictures together with Stormi. Surely, this is a prime example of family life and career overlapping, causing evident challenges for Jenner. The first challenge is adapting to circumstances and raising Stormi in a private setting where everything is overpublicized. It is in Kylie’s hands to provide Stormi with a “normal” childhood and base it more around memories and less about money. Along with giving your child a “normal” life, Kyile also had to run her cosmetics company, Kylie Cosmetics, and uphold her social status by being active on social media. Surely, it’s a lot to handle.
Many people also emphasized that Stormi is in an extremely fortunate position because of being born into a wealthy family, and how it gives her an immense advantage in life. However, if Kylie is not there to parent and share her wisdom with her daughter, then this might be a major problem for when Stormi grows up and matures, and is in a position where she becomes independent.
As you can see, there is definitely a hidden reality of celebrities who have kids. It is important to limit the hate comments and judgements, and take a step back to assess the challenges of the situation. It is equally important to put yourself into the shoes of the celebrities and imagine how busy their lives get. It’s important to remember that everyone has unspoken troubles in their lives, no matter if you are just a kid or a successful influencer, so use your words to spread kindness instead of hostility, and love instead of hate.
#successfulmom #respectwomen #freewoman #careermom

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There are so many worries and anxieties that come with being a mother, however, one of the main concerns that nearly all women have is their ability to simultaneously balance their career and life at home. The truth is many women are filled with anxiety due to the high expectations that are set to be successful. Parenting is hard as it is, especially for mothers, but there are also countless challenges that must be overcome, compromises that have to be made, and a new balance of life to be re-discovered.
Did you know that fewer than one-in-five of all new mothers, and 29 percent of first-time mothers, return to full-time work in the first three years after maternity leave? This falls to 15 percent after five years. Also, around 81 percent of married parents took a career break after their child was born, while only 58 percent of single parents did. What this tells us is that the majority of women give up on their careers after the birth of their children. Women who work in the business industry or are lawyers, doctors, and teachers must all follow a pretty similar journey in deciding their next steps after they gave birth. However, have you thought about how many more factors must be taken for female athletes with kids? How many more internal and external problems are they fighting?
Serena Williams is just one female athlete who has to go through this draining process. This revolutionary female tennis player has 23 singles Grand Slam titles, 14 doubles Grand Slam titles, and is debatably the best female tennis player in the world. However, we must remember that she is a mother, a wife, a woman before she is an athlete. In reality, there are way greater accomplishments that Serena Williams achieved beyond the tennis courts and countless tournaments.
At age 35, Serena had her daughter Olympia. Obviously, the star had to take a break from pursuing tennis competitively so she announced that she would be taking a break for 2 whole seasons. During these 2 years, Williams encountered multiple challenges, both from the physical and mental points of view. Unlike working an office job, being a professional athlete constantly requires you to stay in shape and regularly go through tough training. As her body changed, she gained a few pounds that she soon got rid of, however, it was very mentally draining. With this came her complex feelings that she was also battling. Her previous determination and dedication led her to earn the title of being one of, if not “the best female tennis player” on Earth. With a lengthy break from training and competing, Serena now had to climb up the rankings in the global tennis tournaments again to the #1 top spot. Most people don’t acknowledge the mental toll it can take on a person when they observe their rating go down. This ultimately feels like they are failing, even though this is not the case because they are just taking a break.
When Serena Williams opened up about the difficulties that she had after childbirth, it put her journey into perspective for everyone. It shows that you never know what challenges women are dealing with behind closed doors, and that you should offer your support to people around you regardless of whether they are at the peak of their career, or are having a bad day.

#empowerwomen #freewoman #workingmom #successfulwomen #isupportyou #womensupportwomen #

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Obviously, parenting norms for mothers exist and are putting a lot of pressure on moms around the world. Having parenting norms can either provide shape to the routine of a mother, or it can apply unnecessary pressure to perfectly fit into the role of being a mother. Ranging from physical to emotional factors, the routines and habits of mothers, in general, are found to have formed according to these factors. These factors influence the behavioral requirements every mother feels the need to fulfill in her family role.
Of course, these so-called “parental roles” have evolved throughout the centuries, but the general idea is still implied that the husband of the family must provide the majority of the income, while the wife of the family takes care of business at home. With these standards implied during the 21st Century, they can be encouraging as much as damaging to women. It is evident that occasionally, women find the courage to stray away from these standards embedded into the scheme of relationships and marriages and follow a lifestyle that they truly desire. However, society, directly and indirectly, puts a lot of pressure onto women to follow the standard plan of marrying, having children, and taking care of them while your husband constantly works. No one directly said that we must follow them, but society surely does make it hard to pick any other path. It also applies major pressure on women because soon, they start believing that there is only one “correct” path that they must follow.
A 2006 study by Abma and Martinez found that American women aged 35 to 44 who were voluntarily childless constituted 5% of all U.S. women(1). This means that a booming 95% of women did have children throughout their lives. Of course, I support this cycle as I’m a firm believer in the reproductive circle of life, and I believe in the phenomenon that your family legacy should be continued. However, for the purpose of the question that’s being explored, think of these statistics from a different point of view. About 95% of the female population in the United States all followed a similar lifestyle when it came to parenting. That means that the majority of the female population feels heavily pressured to fulfill the standards created by others.
If these so-called “norms” are eventually eliminated, it would give women around the world more freedom and flexibility in their lifestyles, meaning they would have more opportunities to pursue what they want. What this ultimately shows is that not only would it make women feel freer, but also feel more inspired to explore different fields throughout life without being chained to a standard that they feel the need to fulfill. Parental roles put an unhealthy label on qualities that must be fulfilled in order to be a “successful woman” or a “good mom”, so if we stopped attaching certain standards then we would see a bigger representation of women in all fields in life. This would provide women with a pleasing constant feeling of freedom in our society, while uniting people and coming one step closer to providing the female population with equal opportunities throughout their lifetimes.


Citations:
1. “Voluntary Childlessness.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 June 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voluntary_childlessness.

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Respect: the feeling of deep admiration for a person or their abilities. Usually, the powerful word “respect” is associated with us feeling admiration for a certain individual in our lives, but have we ever considered that individual to be ourselves? We go throughout our daily lives and pay attention to the actions of everyone but ourselves, but often we forget the power that we hold.
Generally, respect is a very broad topic. However, the area that requires so much attention is women! Have you ever noticed, whether it be social media or moments in your every day life, how much hate is spread by women to women? I am extremely surprised that there is so much mutual respect in the world, yet hate seems to be in every little hole. How come? What needs to change? Good question.
Self-respect amongst women is an avoided topic mostly because most forget that we, well, simply have more odds stacked against us. While fighting against every obstacle standing in our way, we forget to hold ourselves accountable for pushing forward the progress of our gender collectively. When respect turns into jealousy and envy, you have to hold yourself accountable for disrupting and bringing down the supportive global community of women behind you.
Once you hold yourself accountable, you instantly gain self-respect. Also, you are letting yourself and others know that you have enough respect for yourself to set you up to be more successful. Once you set yourself up to only spread positivity and be an advocate for peace and mutual respect, you will start to see how this will lead you to a better life. After all, you owe it to yourself.

How many times a day do you encounter pictures of celebrities or Instagram models on social media, and then turn to look at yourself in the mirror just to get disappointed by what you see? You’re probably thinking that this is another article telling you to “just love yourself”, but the reality is that the problem is way more complex.
Unrealistic beauty standards have peaked during recent years and they keep pressuring women into feeling the need to look or act a certain way. Due to this, the expectations of our physical presentation have dramatically risen. But the question still arises: how come even women that are aware of this trap keep falling into it? The truth is, is that everything is embedded into goal setting. Many of our standards are set subconsciously, which is impacted by the information that we interpret throughout the day. What we expect from ourselves is already predetermined and heavily influenced by the expectations of other people that seem to fulfill expectations of their own. In other words, our goals are similar to the people who we surround ourselves with (pictures and videos included) which is why in reality, the social media is already doing most of the goal setting for us. Due to this, the majority of our goals tend to be revolved around the physical aspects in our lives. These subconscious goals are especially dangerous because we usually don’t fully realize or acknowledge their existence.
Now, you are more self-aware about this topic but might still be left wondering, “What now?”. The truth is that it only gets better when you force yourself to set your own realistic expectations that are uniquely catered to you. Once you consciously start setting your own goals, you start to gain control over your thoughts - this is where the change truly happens. When you get to clearly determine your own goals, the expectations for yourself change because you see yourself for what you are now and what you will be once the goals are achieved, instead of constantly chasing someone else’s achievements.
Being self-aware and informed about what you truly want in life holds so much power and freedom. Once you achieve the ability to fully control your thoughts, you have the ability to build the life you have always wanted by simply just being you.

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