It’s been nearly 2 years since I wrote a remotely personal blog post.

I’ve been conflicted and unsure about where a personal blog fits in the scheme of who I am and what I do.

Does a personal blog really fit on my business website?

It’s a laughable question I’ve been asking myself really.  The answer is no different to what I would tell a client.

A relevant personal blog on a business website absolutely belongs there.

There are few better ways to build trust with an audience and authority as a thought leader.

So, here we are, finally I blog again. It’s a relief for me, to be starting somewhere again.

This year I’ve put a lot of thought into what it is that drives me, who I want around me and the things I’m inspired by. Women and leadership have been strong common themes combined with an increasing interest in business and business building.

I’m fascinated and excited by the emergence of new styles of businesses. People breaking down barriers and challenging the status quo, both men and women.

On a personal level these are things that light me up and are helping to shape who I am professionally.

Where has this passion about women and leadership come from?

For fifteen years I worked as a mining professional. When I commenced that journey people would comment that I was a pioneer, but I never saw myself that way. I didn’t consider myself to be any different to my male classmates, and later, colleagues. I had no chip on my shoulder about ‘being a female in a man’s world’ and that worked to my advantage.

In my experience the women who hold that chip on their shoulder make life difficult for themselves. Chips on shoulders tend to result in a passive aggressive demeanour and that’s hard for anyone to work with in any industry.

Throughout my career, first in the mining industry and now in online business development I’ve never expected to be treated differently because I’m female. I actually think that’s true for most women.

Where our expectations differ to that of our male counterparts is in what we expect from ourselves.

We ladies put incredible pressure on ourselves to ‘do it all’. I’m not here to say that it is or isn’t okay. I think it’s nothing more or less than reality.

Finding that intersection point between leadership and every other element of our lives and being comfortable with it. That’s what I want to talk about.

About 12 months ago I started reading Lean In by Susan Sandberg, less than two chapters in I put it down. I felt confronted, sickeningly so. I felt confronted by the responsibility that I suddenly felt to do more, be more, achieve more. That’s not the point of the book but at the time I wasn’t ready to read what she had to say.

Six months later I picked up the book again, I’ve made it about halfway through this time. I felt more open to what Susan had to say and it got me thinking about my place as a leader in the community. All those thoughts have brought me to this point.

I don’t believe that anyone, male or female, should feel that they need to lean in. It’s a freaking BIG ask. I believe that we need to be more true to ourselves than that. The pressure to perform is enormous and it’s that pressure that I feel is leading us to become increasingly fearful of success (not failure).

The more successful we become the more pressure we feel. With great success comes great responsibility. Responsibility to others and ourselves. The more successful we become the greater the potential to stumble and fall. The distance we might fall becomes bigger. It’s downright terrifying.

This blog is going to be about stepping sideways.

It’s also about leaning in, stumbling backwards and jumping for joy. It’s about perspective.

As an eternally positive individual I love hearing about people’s achievements and successes. I like hearing the whole story from outset to outcome. The rollercoaster ride that is business life with all the highs and lows.

I’ll be sharing my experiences, learnings and musing with you and hope to share wisdom and stories from other people in business who’ve recognised the need to do something differently.

I’m starting somewhere today and I look forward to moving in many directions with you.