News and Insights
International Women’s Day 2023
March 8, 2023
As an agency, we’re home to a diverse array of voices that reflect the critical role of women in society. More than 70% of our agency and 60% of our leadership is composed of women.
We’re commemorating International Women’s Day – a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, while also marking a call to action for accelerating women’s equality – by showcasing the voices of women at our agency and throughout history that continue to inspire us.
Last week, members of FINN’s DEI Committee in our European offices held a webinar discussing this year’s theme: #EmbraceEquity. Below is a sample of the insights drawn from the conversation:
Voices of Women Who Inspire Us
Across our global footprint, members of our FINN Fam shared quotes from women past and present who have influenced social, cultural, and political change. These are their voices:
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady of the United States, diplomat, pacifist and activist
Shared by: Rachel Hillman, New York
“花须连夜发,莫待晓风吹”
(Translation: The flowers bloom overnight, do not wait for the morning wind to blow.)
Meaning: We should seize every opportunity we encounter in our life and not wait for unexpected changes.
– Wu Zetian, the only woman who ruled China in Tang Dynasty
Shared by: Xiaoning Chen, Beijing
“I would like to be known as an intelligent woman, a courageous woman, a loving woman, a woman who teaches by being.”
– Maya Angelou, American author, poet and civil rights activist
Shared by: Hannah Roberts, London
“Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.”
– Oprah Winfrey, American talk show host, television producer, actress, author and philanthropist
Shared by: Brittney F. Portlock, Honolulu
“One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.”
– Simone de Beauvoir, French existentialist philosopher, writer, social theorist and feminist activist
Shared by: Marie Chauvel, Paris
“We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller. We say to girls, you can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful. Otherwise, you would threaten the man. Because I am female, I am expected to aspire to marriage. I am expected to make my life choices always keeping in mind that marriage is the most important. Now marriage can be a source of joy and love and mutual support but why do we teach girls to aspire to marriage and we don’t teach boys the same? We raise girls to see each other as competitors not for jobs or accomplishments, which I think can be a good thing, but for the attention of men. We teach girls that they cannot be sexual beings in the way that boys are.”
– Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Nigerian author
Shared by: Emily Soule, Washington, D.C.
“Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be with them. May we raise them.”
– Michelle Obama, the first Black First Lady of the United States, author and civil rights activist
Shared by: Caitlin Gibson, London
“We need women who are so strong they can be gentle, so educated they can be humble, so fierce they can be compassionate, so passionate they can be rational and so disciplined they can be free.”
– Kavita Ramdas, international advocate for gender equity and justice
Shared by: Anupama Rajesh, Bangalore
“Trust yourself. Create the kind of self that you will be happy to live with all your life. Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement.”
– Golda Meir, the first and only female Prime Minister of Israel
Shared by: Ilanit Liberman, Jerusalem
“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.”
– Dolly Parton, American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist and businesswoman
Shared by: Kevin Mason, Nashville and Mary Alice Bernal, Nashville
“The success of every woman should be the inspiration to another. We should raise each other up. Make sure you’re very courageous: be strong, be extremely kind, and above all be humble.”
– Serena Williams, American tennis player (retired)
Shared by: Davia Lilly, New York
“I can buy my own flowers.”
– Miley Cyrus, American entertainer
Shared by: Amy Skelding, London
“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.”
– Marie Curie, Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist and first woman to win a Nobel Prize
Shared by: Nate Llewellyn, Chicago
“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”
– Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Shared by: Allyne Mills, New York
“There is a source of power in each of us that we don’t realize until we take responsibility.”
– Diane Nash, American civil rights activist
Shared by: Lisa Button, Nashville
“What makes you different or weird, that’s your strength.”
– Meryl Streep, American actor
Shared by: Jessica Mataya, San Francisco
“If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.”
– Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress
“I am thankful for my struggle because, without it, I wouldn’t have stumbled across my strength.”
– Alex Elle, American author and wellness educator
Shared by: Mary Alice Bernal, Nashville
“There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they’ll take you.”
– Beatrix Potter, English writer, illustrator, natural scientist and conservationist
Shared by: Richard Piper, London
“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m possible!’”
– Audrey Hepburn, English actor and humanitarian
Shared by: Melanie Strah, Chicago
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady of the United States, diplomat, pacifist and activist
Shared by: MK Kemp, San Francisco
“Feminism is not JUST about women’s rights; it is about achieving equality for everyone, regardless of gender. Everyone benefits from feminism because everyone benefits from equality.”
– Swagata Sen, Indian clinical researcher, advocate of gender equality and women’s rights
Shared by: Morgane Leonard, Paris
“Blame it or praise it, there is no denying the wild horse in us.”
– Virginia Woolf, English author
Shared by: Alty Falvey, Honolulu
“I raise up my voice — not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard.”
– Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate
Shared by: Brenda Hu, New York
“Whatever you choose to do, leave tracks. That means don’t do it just for yourself. You will want to leave the world a little better for your having lived.”
– Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
“I’ve come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that’s as unique as a fingerprint – and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard, and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you.”
– Oprah Winfrey, American talk show host, television producer, actress, author and philanthropist
Shared by: Ellie Hanson, Jerusalem
“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”
– Maya Angelou, American author, poet and civil rights activist
Shared by: Anjie Britton, Washington, D.C.
“Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.”
– Indra Nooyi, Indian American business executive
Shared by: Kanika Gupta, Mumbai
“Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.”
– Maya Angelou, American author, poet and civil rights activist
Shared by: Toni Warren, New York
“No matter what challenges you face, do your best. Believe in the power of hard work and victory will surely belong to those who never give up.”
– Jenny Lang Ping, won Olympic gold medals as both captain (1984) and coach (2016) of China’s women’s volleyball team
Shared by: Ingrid Yan, Shanghai
“I am a very strong believer in listening and learning from others.”
– Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Shared by: Amy Staley, Boston
“I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.”
– Audrey Hepburn, English actor and humanitarian
Shared by: Desiree Ann, Kuala Lumpur
“I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.”
– Jane Austen, English author (from her novel, Persuasion)
“Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting –
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.”
– Mary Oliver, American poet, National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize winner (an excerpt from her poem, Wild Geese)
Shared by: Brianne O’Donnell, New York
“I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels.”
– Maya Angelou, American author, poet and civil rights activist
Shared by: Rachel Everett, London
“Yes, I am merely a woman, yet a force to be reckoned with. Today, more than ever, it is paramount to embrace our womanhood with all its glorious and horrid manifestations. Because being merely a woman is enough. It’s powerful in fact!”
– Bertha Nibigira , FINN Office Assistant