Today is the 8^thof March 2019 and it is International Women’s Day, just a singular day gifted to us women to celebrate how amazing and inspiring we truly are. But, we might as well make the most of it! Perhaps we aren’t allowed more than a day just in case we get ahead of ourselves and start wanting to dominate the world or something … what an outrageous idea, I know. However, as a strong and independent young woman with brains in my head and shoes on my feet, I wanted to say a little something today about female empowerment and the skills that we collectively possess through the very nature of being, well, a woman. 

Let’s take a look at the hospitality and catering industry. For many years, thousands of talented women have been cooking their way to recognition through the space of the kitchen. The stereotypical relationship between women and domesticity has been quite frankly chopped up and thrown into a bubbling pan of spicy sauce. From the passion of Alice Walter who pioneered the first farm to fork organic food movement in California in 1971, to the incredibly talented Clare Smyth who in 2007 became the first British female chef to run and retain a three Michelin starred kitchen at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in London, talented women across the globe are turning the masculine tables of the culinary world by cooking up a hell of a good storm.

It is inspiring to look to the incredible women that have achieved public recognition for their talent and skill, however, I feel that today it is important not to disregard our own individual talents and self-worth. With the space of social media becoming a place of vanity, self-promotion and one-upmanship, it can be difficult to escape from the illusion of other people’s success to focus on the realities of our own lives. Likes on a photo and a high number of followers do not constitute self-worth but create an online presence that can be twisted and warped like the figure of a Barbie doll. Social media is an online platform to enable interaction and engagement with others, but can often encourage feelings of self-doubt and body anxiety in the online race for success and popularity that is given through a like, comment, or follow. 

As a blogger and avid user of social media, I am standing up against the controlling marginalization that both women and men can experience online. For International Women’s Day, I want to look beyond the inspiring individuals that surround my life and to look inwards to appreciate my own self-worth and the inspiration that I can give others. As mothers, carers, workers and lovers, women are inspiring both to themselves and to others that surround them. The desire for women to fit into and perform a number of different roles both at home and at work can result in a constant self-critique of our skills as we strive to achieve more. On International Women’s Day, we need to make the time to focus on ourselves, and the happiness and pride we can take in our unique individuality, we don’t need to fight to be more, or for online validation to know that we are strong and beautiful. 

We are more than just our bodies that are seen on social media. We are the brains in our head, the compassion in our hearts, the resilience in our feet, and the influence of our tongue. Today on International Women’s Day, take a minute to see your own struggles, read your own story and capture your own power, because both individually and together, we are amazing.

Now go take a banging selfie, get the hair colour you always wanted or cancel that date you have been dreading all week. You are more than ready to do you, and you rock! 

E x