Women in Leadership and Taking Up Space

Straight Talk By Nimfa Estrellado December 14, 2019 Sometimes women are removed or denied positions not because of their actions, but be...

Straight Talk
By Nimfa Estrellado
December 14, 2019











Sometimes women are removed or denied positions not because of their actions, but because they are women and not men. Even if the woman is qualified, in patriarchal eyes, she will never be good enough because she is a woman and not a man.

Although there are many famous women changing the world to choose from, a lot of people still perceive women as too emotional to be in leadership positions. Not in my experience. Women are bringing down corrupt politicians and they are not screaming and walking out. Men have always been the psychologically weaker gender. It is why they have resorted to brute force to control women.



Zozibini Tunzi, the 2019 Miss Universe had a powerful message about leadership for young girls, "I think the most important thing we should be teaching young girls today is leadership. It’s something that has been lacking in young girls and women for a very long time, not because we don’t want to but because of what society has labeled women to be. I think we are the most powerful beings in the world and that we should be given every opportunity and that is what we should be teaching these young girls, to take up space, nothing is as important as taking up space in society and cementing yourself, thank you." says Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi from South Africa during her final remarks at the Miss Universe beauty pageant at the Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, Georgia.

South Africa's Zozibini Tunzi is the first Black woman to be crowned Miss Universe in eight years. A black South African woman with natural hair speaking boldly about climate change and women in leadership. Climate change must be taken seriously, women must possess leadership, stood up against racism and sexism and she all did that in one night. Just wow. Congratulations to the new Miss Universe 2019, Zozibini Tunzi.



I love Miss Universe 2019 Tunzi 's answer. To Tunzi for breaking societal norms, I can't agree more. At last, someone had to speak up. It has been irking me for a long time. Opposition to the ordination of women and to women in leadership, in general, is misogynistic.

In the 1920s, women’s responsibilities were to stay at home, be a good wife and a good mother, period. Now women have already gotten so much. Although many people still think that women should stay home and raise the kids while the dad works and gets to do whatever they want at the end of the day. I couldn't imagine living like that.



Don't get me wrong. A woman who loves being a stay-at-home mother and chose to do so is wonderful. A woman forced to stay home with kids she didn’t want is a tragedy. Women are human beings and deserve the right to choose what to do with their lives, end of discussion.

Did you know women and girls make up half of the world's population? However, women have been largely excluded from crucial opportunities including education, access to legal rights, to land and property, access to finance and leadership positions in board rooms and political processes. The world is poorer because of its exclusion of women in key positions. Investing in girls will help fight extreme poverty, keep girls in school, end teen pregnancy, eradicate child marriage and promote equal employment opportunities.

In the era of competition, men and women both desire for a successful career with a decent work-life balance. But in this race, only one with determination, integrity, and self-belief gets what they desire.

Women of color face both race and gender bias. Being more aware of our own biases is the first step in reshaping leadership narratives. Educating the girl child helps enhance the status of women in society, it puts more women in positions of leadership and decision making. Let us even the odds because how else can we ALL succeed when some of us are being held back? Supporting and working hard to elect our favorite candidate is the second.

Regardless of gender, the quality of leadership is determined by the traits of the leader. Men and women are intentionally designed differently and gifted with different traits in order to succeed.

There are so many different ways to lead, you don’t have to be a manager to be considered a leader. Women wear many different hats and that is what makes us so powerful.