Is Women Empowerment For Real?
I noticed a common trend and that’s actually part of what fueled me to produce “The UnMasked Effect” because I noticed that there were women who made “truth” a part of their appearance and not necessarily a part of their lifestyle.
I am going to be brutally honest here. We have A LOT further to go in really empowering one another as women. We have to stop calling each other all these mean and hateful names, we have to stop competing with one another, we have to stop selling ourselves short to have a perceived level of success and we have to stop pretending that we are about the solidarity of women when deep inside there is jealousy, envy and selfish ambition. We say that we’re really looking to empower each other but in actuality plenty of times we may be looking to get ahead or be a part of a “cool” movement.
The degradation of women starts at such an early age. Boys are praised for having a girlfriend, while little girls easily get the labels “easy” and “fast.” We have to show our girls from young that they are more than the clothes they wear or the cars they drive at 16. When our girls get into a scuffle with another girl at school, one of the first reasons to blame is jealousy which in turn develops this notion that “girls are jealous and I’m better than her so that’s why she doesn’t like me.” This ends up being the mentality that we grow with. I know we have to teach our girls how to look out after themselves but is it really helping long-term success?
We have to show our girls that they are more than the boys that like them. Say what you may boys and men play a vital role on our self-esteem if we allow our worth to be defined in how others view us.
We have to stop implementing our own fears and insecurities on our girls because they pay more attention to what we do rather than what we say. We have to know that we are enough just as we are. You ARE enough. It doesn’t matter what education you have, where you work, what shoes you have on, how much money you have, how many followers you have on social media…you my dear are ENOUGH.
If more of us realized that, then we we would really start to be able to empower ourselves and each other as women.
Ratings for reality TV where women are constantly beating on each other’s self-images are through the roof but positive images fail to even make the cut. I go to conference after conference, event after event and we talk all the time about how men differ from women but when is someone going to say what about what women do to each other? It’s an ugly truth that we have to deal with and we have to start doing something about it.
Women empowerment is more than an award show, a luncheon or a social network. Women empowerment is a lifestyle, it says no to the cattiness, jealousy, competition and low self-esteem. It says hello to encouragement, love, beauty, community, support, authenticity, transparency, and wholeness.
I’m in no way beating us up as women, I’m saying enough is enough already. It’s time we authentically do better and embrace each other’s legacy.
The UnMasked Effect Episode 3: Facing Fear & Vulnerability
God Does Not Do Group Calling
Let’s be real here for one second.
We live in a culture that tells you to work until you can’t work anymore and keep working after that. Rightfully so, because 40% of Americans are one check away from living under the poverty line. I completely understand that we have to work, but shouldn’t we at least try to create a work life that is what we want? I know it’s hard, but it is possible. Is that not the American dream?
So on my journey of birthing my vision and living my legacy, I will admit that I feel super alone because I’m not doing the ordinary thing. Ordinary would have been to stay at a job the made me miserable and indulge in shopping, drinking or whatever else to take my mind off the fact that I was miserable at work. I speak from experience. Extraordinary is walking by an insane amount of faith and trusting God to show me how to use my gifts, talents and abilities to serve others and ultimately live the life that He ordained for me.
After battling with these feelings of “loneliness”, I heard a pastor preach and his message was “God doesn’t do group calling, He called you so you have to be willing to walk alone. Remember that no matter how lonely you may feel, God is and always will be with you.”
That message pierced my heart because I knew I needed to hear it. I learned that I have to be willing to walk my journey alone and sometimes that’s best because truth is most people will not understand why you’re choosing courage over comfort.
So many times we want our loved ones to understand, support us or even walk with us on our journey but that is not how it works out sometimes. You have to be willing to walk your journey of living in purpose by yourself. It’s not up to you to make others understand, you have to live in the conviction that what you are doing is right for you.
We each have a different calling over our lives and I am tired of seeing fear play such a vital role in holding us back. Fear tells you that you will lose your friends and you’re better off taking the safe route. I do not know of one influential leader that got to where they are by playing it safe or worrying about who would join them on the journey.
Truth is that your journey will show you who your real friends are. Not everyone is set to make it with us, sometimes we hold onto relationships for dear life without realizing that perhaps the season for that relationship has passed. It’s OK to let people go and trust God to take care of them as you do. We are not responsible for other people’s lives; that’s actually a deadly and dysfunctional road to walk down. You have to believe that people have the power to lead their own lives and you have the power to lead yours and yours only.
Be committed to you and your calling. Remember God does not do group calling, He called YOU and no matter how you may feel you are never alone. I’m convinced that me being “alone” is a sign that I am well on my way because all the greats have had to walk their journey alone at one point, even when the world did not believe or understand.
The UnMasked Effect Episode 2: Embracing Beauty & Confidence
Watch Episode 2 of our web series, The UnMasked Effect. Episode 2 – Embracing Beauty & Confidence
The UnMasked Effect Episode 1: Who They Are
Watch the Episode 1 of our web series The UnMasked Effect, Who They Are.
What’s Your Mask? Watch “The UnMasked Effect” Web Series and Get Your FREE “UnMasked Challenge”
We’ve officially launched our web series “The UnMasked Effect” where (8) influential women courageously share their fears, the real price of success, the good and the bad of their journey to womanhood and so much more. They laugh, cry and break through walls in hopes of inspiring you to do the same. We learn about beauty, confidence, vulnerability, self-worth, purpose, wholeness, legacy and even the origin of the word “ratchet.”
These women beautifully speak their truths and share their stories. In spite of what others may think, they bravely remove their masks of perceived beauty and having it all together, all of the time. They encourage us to be ourselves, be whole and embrace our truths. Truth is that there is a process to achieving your legacy and the first is to “unmask.”
When you “unmask” you are learning who you really are, honoring your truth, embracing wholeness and shedding of any guilt, shame, fear, rejection, doubt or insecurities that may have held you back. Before you begin to do what you’ve been called to do, you have to become the person you were called to become. When you “unmask,” you are becoming!
We created this series in hopes to spark the conversation in girlfriend circles around the world; our hope is that women have this very conversation with themselves and develop the courage to live free and “unmask.”
With that being said, we decided to create “The UnMasked Challenge” to give you the opportunity to “unmask” and work on who you’re becoming so you can triumphantly do what you’ve been called to do. We want you to look in the mirror, embrace who you really are and if there is something you do not like, then this is your chance to work on that.
The challenge is broken down into (4) different segments, each corresponding with the theme of the episode airing that week. Each week you’ll get to partake in exercises that are designed to help you grow in character, defeat obstacles and discover your truth. Use this as your guide to “unmasking.” Here are the themes per each episode:
Week 1: Who They Are/Embracing Beauty & Confidence
Week 2: Facing Fears & Vulnerabilities
Week 3: You ARE Worth It!
Week 4: Legacies Unveiled
We hope you take this challenge seriously and feel free to interact with us on Facebook & Twitter and join in on the conversation! As always, it’ my honor to serve you! Download the FREE challenge below!
About The UnMasked Effect Web Series
In response to recent media targeting women, founder and CEO of Embrace Her Legacy, Maria I. Melendez has executive produced and launched a noteworthy web-series in response to the repeated images of women who are either engaging in cat fights over non-sense, negatively judging each other’s level of success, or who have glamorized their self-worth by the cars they drive, designer bags they’ve purchase or who they’ve slept with.
Truth is that we as women have come such a long way and are seriously kicking ass in our careers while balancing the hats of wife, mom, friend, aunt or neighbor. We are praised for our successes daily with the repeated likes, follows, retweets and “You better go girl” comments on social media. But what happens when your ambition is really a cover-up for lack of self worth? Or when you seemingly have it “all together” but truth is you’re scared to pieces of pursuing your true passion because of your fear of rejection? Or when you are told you look beautiful and cannot accept the compliment because you are too focused on your flaws? Or the classic one of secretly being jealous of “her” because “she” has what you want? These are those deep-down, in the gut feelings that we carry with us EVERY day, while we continue to put on our masks of perceived success, joy, and wholeness because we dare not admit and embrace our truths because otherwise we are “weak.”
The deception has gone on far too long and Embrace Her Legacy is doing something about it. Embrace Her Legacy has taken the matter into our own hands and we’re talking about it in an honest, unprecedented, inspirational and impactful conversation. We hand-selected a group of (8) respected, professional women to discuss their journey of success and the price that they have had to pay in order to achieve their success. “The UnMasked Effect” is a sincere and thought-provoking discussion proctored by leadership and empowerment advocate, Cordelia Abrokwah, where women discuss the implied “masks” that they have worn while hiding truths about their character, insecurities or personal hardships due to fear, lack of self-worth, guilt, shame or embarrassment. Throughout the conversation, our cast of women learn the wisdom and motivation needed to remove any unnecessary masks and triumph over fears, doubts or insecurities that may have hindered them on their journey.
The climax of the series is when each woman partakes in an innovative yet effective exercise where they remove their implied masks. What happens next is the confrontation and honesty with oneself that leads each woman to share her truth, remove her mask and give someone else the courage to the same.
We like to call it “The UnMasked Effect.”
Watch the entire series on our YouTube Channel – Take a sneak peek of the series trailer below!
