I had intended to choose just one inspirational woman to write about this week, but the following two women were inseparable in my mind, and just happen to both be part of the film industry and share the same (spelt differently) name.
Katharine Hepburn has always been a favourite actress of mine, both for the characters she played on screen (which were usually strong-willed women) and for her off screen actions. She would often wear masculine style clothes, such as trousers which at the time were considered taboo. One of Hepburn’s quotes I love is: "If you obey all the rules you miss all the fun."
Another more current inspirational woman is American film Director, Kathryn Bigelow. She is the first woman to win an Academy Award for a war film (The Hurt Locker). She has been quoted as saying: "If there's specific resistance to women making movies, I just choose to ignore that as an obstacle for two reasons: I can't change my gender, and I refuse to stop making movies."
The common theme for these two women is that they haven’t let other people’s expectations or gender stereotypes dictate how they should behave. It is obvious that they have both done what they naturally wanted to do, and thankfully (for filmgoers!) they didn’t succumb to pressure to conform.
Our business journey can often feel like this. It takes a particular personality type to want to run a business, and equal parts tenacity and skill to make it successful! You will no doubt come across naysayers (if you haven’t already) or people who think that what you are attempting to achieve in business is not what women ‘should’ do. My tip is simple: ignore them. And continue to ignore them as you listen to your gut instinct. As Ms Hepburn advises, you’re likely to miss all the fun if you don’t!
Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender