Webster’s Dictionary defines “leading lady” as an actress who plays the leading female role. If you are a woman who leads, then life can feel like a motion picture and you have to rehearse your lines just right to nail the lead role. You have to compete with other amazing women who are rehearsing for the very same part. I have been a female leader for more than twenty years. I have seen, heard, felt, cried, and hurt a lot as I was becoming the “leading lady” I am today. I am so proud of the young woman who thought she could manage a department of 300 employees at Wal-Mart. I was terrified, but why not? There have been so many people, places, situationships and encounters that helped me become who I see when I look in the bathroom mirror every morning.

When Hollywood portrays leading ladies, they often depict the wives of dignitaries, female actresses who are Oscar worthy or maybe even the wife of the President of the United States. But there have been some “leading ladies” that never made it to the big silver screen or never married a wonderful successful politician. There have been some “leading ladies” that have wiped noses and cleaned up boo boos and bruises. Today, I want to salute the “leading ladies” that paved the way for us to lead and dominate in our sphere of influence.

Moms and Aunties

Some of us would not be the women we are today if our moms chose abortion over us. Today we thank our moms for choosing life. We thank our moms for wiping our noses and cleaning up all of our messes. We thank our moms for teaching us by example (good and bad) how to be the women we are today. We thank our moms for making incredible sacrifices for every dream that we could dream. We thank our moms that could not be great moms and made the decision to give us up for adoption to a mom that would raise a leader. We salute our moms for sowing the seeds of leadership first. Some of us did not have good moms so we had those fearless aunties who stepped up and filled in the empty spaces. We thank our aunties for always buying all the cookies so we could be “cookie queen” in Girl Scouts. We thank aunties who sold our school candies and harassed their friends so we could dominate in school fundraising, they helped make us business gurus. We thank our aunties for giving us a home and loved us when we needed it the most. Today, we salute the aunties who helped make us amazing women.

Sisters and Girlfriends

We are “leading ladies” because we had sisters who pushed us passed our comfort zones and challenged our mediocrity. Our sisters cried with us when we wanted to quit schools, jobs, careers, marriages and the like. They saw the leader inside us and demanded our leadership. Sisters, we thank you. Some of us did not have sisters or the relationships with our sisters were estranged, toxic and down-righted complicated. So, our girlfriends became our sisters. Girlfriends told us to stop being a punk and pushover and demanded we respect ourselves. Our girlfriends made us stand up to the bullies and the jerks that tried to devalue our self-esteem and character. Our girlfriends bailed us out of jail, only because they could not get off work, while we were being a menace to society and share the jail cell with us. Our girlfriends saw our potential and never let us live beneath it. We are “leading ladies” because our girlfriends said we could do it although we sucked at the project we were working on at the time. Our girlfriends believed in us when we did not. We are “leading ladies” because our girlfriends said we could.

Enemies and Situationships

Leading ladies often see enemies and situations that hurt and challenge us as a negative. Honestly, we are tough as nails because our enemies made us tough. We had to fight and pay the price to lead, we must salute every enemy we have ever had. We are better because they challenged us. Our enemies demanded that we exercised courage, tenacity, and dignity in the face of opposition. We salute every enemy that forced us to rise to our leadership capacity and potential and become the “leading lady” we see every day. I have often looked at situations with contempt because of how much they hurt. The situationships in my life were needed so I would grow as a leader. Because leadership is stewardship, I would not know how to effectively steward people, places, and resources unless I was placed in situations that demanded the best of me even when the worst of me was vying for recognition. Today we salute every situationship that caused us harm, pain, grief, and loss. The situationships made us FEARLESS. Enemies and situationships forced us to lead. They taught us how to be a lady always.

They Went Before Us

We have the right to be a “leading lady” because the lady before us decided to push the envelope and say, “I have a voice and you will hear me.” We are thankful for the women that launched the Women’s Suffrage Movement giving us the right to vote. We are thankful for the women that held the signs during the court proceedings of Roe vs. Wade giving us power to choose. We are thankful for the women that were beaten, raped, ridiculed, and pushed aside but kept fighting for her right to lead. We are thankful for the unsung “leading ladies” that said “Aint I A Woman” and demanded to be counted. We are thankful for the women that stepped aside, so that we could have our chance. Leading Ladies remember you did not get to where you are alone. Another “leading lady” went first.

Leading Ladies you are not here by accident. You were purposed here. So Live Well, Love Well and Lead Well. Leading Lady be authentically you.