Today I want to share a list of inspiring women, a quote from each of them and what I think they all have in common. I have talked about most of these women on the blog before. Each of them has a message or has shared words that have really resonated with me.
This list doesn’t include the wonderfully inspiring women I am lucky to call family and friends and know in real life. If I could send flowers to each of them I would!
Happy International Women’s Day!
Inspiring Women
(note: these are in no particular order)
Adriene Mishler
“Present and Awake. Love yourself. Love your neighbour. Move from a place of connect. Present and Awake. May all Beings be Free and Happy.”
Adriene created Yoga with Adriene and offers free yoga for all via her YouTube channel. She comes across to me as something of an old soul – full of wisdom to share. I enjoy her sense of humour and think she is trying to help as many people as possible through sharing her love of Yoga.
I’ve previously written about Adriene in How I’m Building a Daily Yoga Practice and True – a 30 day Yoga journey.
Elise Joy
“I’d say we were “out of the woods,” but I have begun to realize that parenting is “The Woods.” The object is not to get out.” (quote source)
I read Elise’s blog years ago and discovered her through a love of scrapbooking. She shared stories on her blog as she moved around the US, got married and became a parent. I loved her honesty of her struggles with early motherhood and wish I could have been that eloquent with a newborn. She no longer regularly blogs but she has a podcast and shares her current projects on Instagram.
Elizabeth Gilbert
I think I came by Elizabeth Gilbert in a strange order. I watched the movie Eat Pray Love. Then I read Big Magic and next I read Eat Pray Love followed by Committed. I love her style of writing. Her ‘Dear Ones’ letters (she shares on social media) are always emotive. I love that she is open about how life goes on past the happily ever after and all the things that come after it.
Julia Cameron
“In times of pain, when the future is too terrifying to contemplate and the past too painful to remember, I have learned to pay attention to right now. The precise moment I was in was always the only safe place for me.”
The Artist’s Way has been a fantastic workbook for me. I am now working my way through Vein of Gold. I enjoy Julia Cameron’s writing and story telling. Some of her essays (particularly the one the quote above is from) really resonate with me and help me understand more about pain and grief.
I’ve mentioned Julia Cameron previously when I shared my thoughts on The Artist’s Way and also talked about my Vein of Gold Pilgrimage.
Gretchen Rubin
I love Gretchen’s books: The Happiness Project, Happier at Home and Better than Before. I truly believe that Better than Before has changed my life and I was excited to meet Gretchen briefly after listening her speak in London a few months ago.
I’ve written a blog post all about Better then Before and how I think it changed my life.
J.K. Rowling
“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.”
She wrote Harry Potter. Which has so much to teach us about light and dark, integrity and growing up. J.K. Rowling has reportedly given a lot of her earnings away to charity. And she’s shared difficulties in her past that she has overcome.
A J.K Rowling quote features on my Reading Rituals Introduction.
So what do these inspiring women all have in common?
They:
- Are creators
- Are writers
- Share their messages to help others
- All earn money doing what they love
- Are passionate about what they do
- Have all shared personal battles and how they got through them
- Strike me as being wise
- All have a wonderful way of using words
There are countless other women I could add to this list but these are the ones I want to share today.
Who are your Inspiring Women?