Watch :: Read :: Listen :: Play

Kelly Corrigan’s piece Transcending: Words on Women + Strength where she talks about that “lean and catch thing” women do. It always makes me so glad I was born a woman.

Sheryl Lee Ralph singing at her Emmy acceptance speech, “I am an endangered species…I am a woman…I am an artist…and I know where my voice belongs.” Mic. Drop.

Valarie Kaur’s TED talk about revolutionary love in a time of rage. She reminds me to do as the midwives tell us: Push! And then? Breathe… and that this might well be the darkness of the womb, not the tomb.

Amanda Gorman reading her inauguration poem, “The Hill We Climb” takes my breath away every time and gives me hope for our future. It’s a clarion call to lead bravely—and clearly—to a “raise this wounded world” to a new dawn.

Chameli Ardagh’s TED talk on the fierce face of the feminine. Watching this helped me reframe my anger and rage to see how it can be a force for good and deeply of service—not violence.

A Stronghold of Resistance is a short film by Drew Doggett on the wild horses of Sable Island. This haunts me—as the old woman’s voice who narrates it and the fact that she refers to the island as “her” and “she” feels like my own.

Abby Wambach’s commencement speech to the women of Barnard College. This reminds me of the power of our wolfish instincts, and how it will be our greatest salvation.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez public response to being accosted by a representative on the steps of our capital. This is what it looks like to dissent with grace, integrity and ferocity.

Keala Settle singing “This is Me” at rehearsal of The Greatest Showman. Never fails to inspire me—especially when she comes out from behind the music stand. Her power is palpable.

Jennifer Anniston in the boardroom (aka “the strong woman scene“) of The Morning Show. “Not quite the apology you were expecting?” BOOM.

Priya Vulchi and Winona Gua in a TED talk about racially literacy. These two women boil down what our nation is missing in 12 minutes. This is what I watched to move beyond overwhelm.

Greta Thunberg speaking to leaders at UN Climate Action Summit. I want to be this brave and speak the hard truths of our world this plainly—and powerfully. This never fails to inspire me.

Julie Gillard, former Prime Minister of Australia demonstrates what it looks like to publicly and powerful call out a leader for his misogyny, hypocrisy and lack of accountability. She specifically names and owns her offense. I aim to be like her.

Beyoncé’s performance at Grammys when she was pregnant with twins. The opening (“Do you remember being born…are you thankful for the hips that cracked?”) plugs me into the power, beauty, and lineage of women.

Love, Actually, the opening scene of the movie. I could watch this short clip on an endless loop. It reminds me to look for the love in the ordinary moments around me.

Oprah Winfrey being interviewed by Stanford’s Graduate School of Business on career, life, and leadership. This is where I got over my fear of being “too much” and started to get that being fully me was my job—and was deeply of service.

Amanda Bennett’s TED talk about how we need a more noble narrative around death and dying—as an alternative to the “fight” story. Much of my work in change involves supporting a graceful death—this talk helped affirm that need.

Brené Brown speaking at the World Domination Summit—a deep track before she was well known, always makes me laugh, remember that choosing joy is courageous, and catches me if I’m “dress rehearsing disappointment”

Emma Watson speaking to the UN about the HeForShe campaign. This is a beautiful illustration of how it looks for women to actively enlist men to fight for gender equality.

The Dinner Scene in Don’t Look Up. The very last scene of this satire gave me a visual for what it might look like to keep my eyes and heart open in a world that seems intent on burying its head in the sand. I come back to this a lot just for the prayer.

Jonna Jinton’s channel on YouTube. Anything this woman does (start with this) is like balm for my soul, but this one gives me hope and faith in humanity—especially the old woman from Wyoming at the end.

Jackson Katz’s TED talk about why violence against women is a men’s issue. This gives me hope for having more men as allies, and is a powerful illustration of how we systematically take men out of the equation—and how we can put them back in.

Michelle Obama speaking at the DNC for Hillary. Despite the outcome, this is what I watch to help me stay in integrity when hate, greed, and corruption is all I see. And this emotional one about “The men I know….” inspired my men’s circle.

An On Being Listening Party—Celebrating 20 Years with Krista Tippet, host of On Being, and loads of guests and listeners. Whenever I want to remember the goodness in our humanity, and the power of art, poetry and storytelling to light our way forward, this is what I reach for. It lifts me up as it moves me to tears.

Cole Arthur Riley being interviewed on We Can Do Hard Things about her book, This Here Flesh. Something important happens for me listening to this—she intersects contemplation with embodiment reminding me what a deeply feminine form of divinity could look like.

Clarissa Pinkola Estés’s audio book, Mother Night: Myths, Stories and Teachings for Learning How to See in the Dark. This stopped me in my tracks and gave me words to describe what I had been doing intuitively—as a medial woman, I was  capable of seeing behind the veil.

Naomi Alderman—The Power. I reached for this BBC interview with her about her book the weekend after the Roe v. Wade decision came down, and it plugged me back into the power of women. It helped me feel like I was part of a larger movement.

Jonna Jinton Music on Spotify. If you don’t know who she is, look for her above in the WATCH section. These are all the songs she uses in her films and they instantly transport me.

Tricia Hersey being interviewed on We Can Do Hard Things podcast. See my notes for this above in the READ section, but honestly this was the thing that made me see my pilot light was barely lit—and then do something about it.

Lisa Lister reading an excerpt (Root to Rise) from her first book, Love Your Lady Landscape. I listen to this anytime I want to access my power, stoke my fire, or remember why I’m here—as a woman. It does it for me every time.

Susan Cain talking about her book, Bittersweet, on the Good Life Project podcast. Listening to this helped me see how my tendency to be drawn to “the melancholic” wasn’t a downer, it was a source of power. I immediately devoured her book.

Brené Brown talking about creativity with Elizabeth Gilbert was when I finally owned who I am—and started calling myself an artist—because I saw how critical making was to my mental health: “if I’m not creating, I’m not good.”

Isabella Wilkerson talking about her book, Caste, with Krista Tippet, host of On Being, in front of a live audience. I had devoured her book (see READ above) when it came out, but hearing her speak about it three years later was incredible.

Samin Nosrat talking on Unlocking Us about her book, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat—on being brave and creative in a world with trolls, critics and bullies. She inspires me to no end on how to be real, imperfect and messy as we define success on own terms.

Margaret Wheatley talking about her book Who Do We Choose to Be? on the Insights from the Edge podcast. I have followed this woman since graduate school because of my love of systems thinking and change, but this interview gave me a new way to think about leadership in these chaotic times.

A “story arc” with 7 simple prompts – I am no stranger to the power of using third-person writing exercises to elicit truth and wisdom from inside a body and soul. I’ve seen it work for years as I’ve run my In Her Words writing experiences. But when I attended a writing workshop at The Omega Institute with John Roedel, he wrote these 7 simple writing prompts on an easel pad that blew my mind. They can be used in countless ways to string together simple sentences that result in a powerful story.

Qoya dance free movement videos with Rochelle Schieck — I can’t tell you how many times these free movement videos she offers on her site have gotten me out of my head and back in my body. They’re 15 minutes, tops, and I swear they’re magic. The idea of Qoya dance is that when we move our bodies we remember we remember we are wise, wild and free. She invites movement to intersect with prayer—which feels deeply feminine to me. And also? You know you’re doing it “right” if it feels good.

Storybrand formula – I was told about this book, written by Donald Miller, when I was writing the copy for my website. The formula is awesome, but the book is kinda meh. There’s a great 3 min summary of it that I like, but I’ve created a cheat sheet of the formula that I’ve shared with my clients for years. It can be used for personal or professional use, for story ideas, self-reflection, and even presentations or pitches.

Kubler-Ross Stages of Grief—this is one of the most effective tools I know to help people understand how we naturally move through transition (and ultimately change) as humans. I’ve used it with countless leaders over the years to help them guide people in their organizations, and I’ve used it with my individual clients to help them appreciate why they are feeling “stuck” or spinning their wheels as they make changes in their lives. It’s helpful context to demonstrate how we move from past to present awareness (left/right of quadrant) as well as internal/self to external/environment focus (top/bottom of quadrant).

Valarie Kaur’s See No Stranger: Guide to the Compass—this tool, found online in her Revolutionary Love Project Learning Hub is one of the most powerful frames I’ve ever found for getting at the specific practices to support us in the act of “revolutionary love”. Making the choice to engage in the labor needed to tend to ourselves, each other and our opponents—powerful medicine for our times.