To be Ambitious is a Great Thing.

• To be ambitious is a great thing.

About 2 months ago, I shared this sentence with the 22 selected female participants at the launch of the Lean In Career Programme, an 8-week career programme developed by Asia Women Circle and Leadapreneur.

​Because you see… Ambition is believing in yourself and in your abilities. Ambition is our drive. Ambition is the HUNGER we feel to create something greater than ourselves. Ambition is like the fuel that feeds a fire, and the stars that lighten up the sky. It’s what makes us shine bright, and burn with desire. Ambition is what enables you & I to become our own version of what it means to be successful.

• The greater your ambition, the greater you can become.

I think we can all agree that to have “ambition” is important, for men & women, to grow, to be successful, and to advance the world we live in. But for many different reasons which I’m still trying to understand, the word “ambition”, when combined with the word “woman” feels somewhat disconcerting for many in our societies, whether you’re in Malaysia, Switzerland or Brazil. As a woman, if you choose to prioritize your career, you’re seen to “selfish”. If you lead, you’re called “bossy”. And if you raise your voice, you’re being “aggressive”. Why is “ambition” incompatible with being feminine? My lean in pledge was to marry the 2; ambition & women, and it is what inspired me to champion the Lean In Career Programme. Because to be ambitious is a great thing. 

I am so proud, and honoured, to have witnessed over the past 8 weeks 22 female professionals harness their ambitions to lean in. Through a highly sophisticated process & innovative methodologies, powered by Leadapreneur ;-)  the Lean In Career Programme focused on enabling the participants to actually achieve their career goals instead of talking about them. Earlier this morning some of you witnessed 22 women share how they leaned in to achieve what they thought was impossible. They gained clarity and confidence to lead, negotiating for higher salaries, earn promotions, start new companies & build ideas, better teams, relationships & movements. Every one of their stories is united by the fact that they awakened their ambition and they chose to do something great for themselves. With a 0% drop out rate and a 100% mentor retention rate, these women and their Lean In stories are a true testimony of what it means to be ambitious. Their stories spoke for themselves and proved that we can achieve greatness when we choose to pursue our ambitions. Ladies, I salute you and your courage. Thank you for inspiring me to believe that to be ambitious is a great thing.

Ladies & gentlemen, we need to change the stereotype of what it means to be an “ambitious woman”. Because I believe ambition is not a dirty word. Ambition is a great word. It is an AMAZING word. It’s is a sexy word. A word you use to build your future. And so if we want to empower women to harness their potential, we need to empower them to be ambitious. I urge each one of you to ask yourselves “what is your great ambition?” That’s a big question. What is it in your life you think you cannot accomplish yet you yearn to achieve?... Or what is it that people have said that you cannot do?... Wouldn’t it feel really good to prove them all wrong? Wouldn’t it feel better to prove yourself right? And to stop standing in the shadow & to step into the light. YOUR light.
 
Imagine this… What would happen if we were all brave enough to believe in our own abilities & to awaken the fire of being ambitious? I think we would live in a better world. Because to be ambitious is to announce to the world that it is your time to shine. Seize it, live it, become it. Breath the fire of your ambition, awaken your soul & become great. Greatness lies in all of us; we’re just waiting for the chance to release it. So I say to you: your time is now. This is not the end, this is the beginning of your time to shine.

Ladies, this is your time. Believe in yourself. Be bold. Be brave. Be Brilliant. Build a better world.

Thank you.

Jessica Macias <3

Promoting the Lean In Career Programme, an 8-week journey to empower driven & ambitious women
​to accelerate their careers. This was right before it all started... 

At the launch of the Lean In Career Programme, hosted at Google HQ. The 22 selected participants went through an intense boot-camp where they learnt about leadership, teamwork, communication, personal branding and further Lean In skills & tips.

 Jan Bartscht delivered a 1-day workshop that enabled the participants to create their Lifepath and map out their career plan over the next 8 weeks. With this tool, they were then paired with a mentor of their choice to guide them to pursue their professional goals.

​At the various Mid-week Networking Evenings where the participants, mentors, trainers and Lean In Committee
re-connected, re-focused and re-energized to pursue their ambitions. 
On top right, participants met with their respective mentors (top senior executives) every week. 

The first batch of the amazing wonder women who graduated from the Lean In Career Programme
at the inaugural ‘Lean In Tournament’, hosted at Mindvalley's Hall of Awesomness.