Following last year’s successful inaugural Women Work event, which aimed to motivate women and help them to build everything from their confidence to their own business models, founding member Ania Jeffries reveals what this year’s focus will be at the next event, on April 20
The purpose of Women Work is to create a better future for yourself, your family, your community, your business. It is aimed at women at home, women who are looking to return to work after a leave of absence, women who are out of work, women who are looking to set up a business, women who are already in business, and women who are wanting to grow in self-belief and confidence to fully maximise their potential.
We want to help you to be the best you can, so we have created an event for you that is devoted to personal and professional growth by offering fantastic networking opportunities to form connections both personally and professionally, and a platform for many great speakers, businesses and charities.
Our inspirational speakers will provide you with some answers. They will give you tips and strategies to support you in the home and business, to create positive mental health and wellbeing. There is something for everyone, from how to create a positive mindset to how to overcome that inner chatter, reframe those negative thoughts, manage change, recognise the early warning signs of meltdown, set up a business and learn to love yourself.
I believe that together we are stronger, and in supporting each other we will hope to build a firm foundation for our next generation and for our community.
Following last year’s successful inaugural Women Work event at the Assembly Hall, where we had over 1,300 visitors and more than 70 workshops taking place, this year we are at Salomons Estate and have 50 experts speaking. The event is sponsored by the Times of Tunbridge Wells and also Global Woman Club.
Proceeds raised from the tickets will go to help support the eating disorder charity BEAT, who will have an ambassador at the event to share their own personal stories of eating disorders. Other contributors on the day include the Tunbridge Wells-based children’s counselling charity Fegans and domestic abuse volunteer support service DAVSS, but there will also be a number of individuals speaking.
The Times shares three of their stories below…
WHO WILL BE SPEAKING AT THE EVENT?
Positive mental health is key to building self-belief and confidence. Women Work hope all their speakers will help you to achieve both, and here is a taste of the kind of stories you will hear…
Tammy Clark
From overcoming post-natal depression, anxiety, a mental breakdown and a late diagnosis of adult ADHD, Tammy Clark now spends her time creating and taking part in projects that are designed to help others.
As part of Tammy’s personal journey of selfhealing, she set herself a goal to overcome and face her biggest fears.
In 2015, she began this challenge by shaving off all her hair to prove that as a woman she was much more than just her visual appearance. While doing so, Tammy raised £1,200 for the MS Society and Teddy Treats Children’s Charity.
In 2016, she set her next goal to overcome her fear of heights, and with the help and support of her brothers she completed a tandem parachute jump from 12,000ft – together they raised £1,000 for the MS Society.
In 2017, Tammy set herself her biggest challenge yet – she decided to face several fears at once by speaking publicly on the subject of mental health. Tammy was asked to take part in the first Women Work event and courageously took to the stage on four occasions throughout the day, speaking to a combined audience of over 800 people.
She spoke openly of the struggles of dealing with and moving on from mental health issues, and shared insights into the realities of everyday life. In 2018, Tammy’s new goal is to overcome her fear of rejection and finally allow for the release of her much-anticipated children’s activity book ‘The Secret in the Rainbow – A Gift of Positivity’
to go on sale via Amazon. Watch this space for the development of this new venture…
Lara Khalaf
Who would have thought that a woman who came to the UK speaking a handful of words in English would end up speaking on the prestigious TEDx platform?
The same woman who was also told that because of her migrant status she could not
aspire to get into management, and is now dedicating her time to supporting women to
become extraordinary business leaders?
“My name is Lara and I was born in Syria. I went from there to Spain to the UK – three countries that offered a different set of challenges, some imposed upon me and some chosen by me. “One of the biggest ones to overcome was the effect one word, engrained in the Arab culture, had on me – and the word is ‘3aib’, which means ‘shame, disgrace’.
“But for me, going from victim to victor was easy once I understood that overcoming the emotional heaviness of such a word was key to my success. “It took effort, time and work, and now it is the right moment to raise awareness of the impact this word has on people – because it is not ‘3aib’ to challenge your culture, to have a voice as a woman and to want to do great in the world.”
Ruth Driscoll
Ruth Driscoll is ‘The Life Liberator’. She is creating a global liberation, leading those
living with manipulative, abusive, controlling relationships into empowerment and freedom. Her training and programmes offer clients impactful insights into how to regain their lives with confidence, congruence and dignity. Ruth was the successful headteacher of a challenging inner-city primary school before the bullying of an abusive partner caused a complete change in her circumstances. She now uses her personal and professional experiences to provide a unique perspective on how it feels to live with an abusive partner and, crucially, how sufferers can release themselves effectively and safely. Ruth is a mentor, trainer and professional public speaker. Her story has been heard around the world.
BROUGHT TO BOOK
Ania Jeffries has contributed to a new collection of stories, entitled ‘The Pay it Forward Series: Notes to my Younger Self’, which will be published on March 17 as part of
a growing global movement called the Women of Contribution.
The authors are encouraging readers to purchase the book and then follow the ‘pay it forward’ concept. Once the book has been read, then that person pays it forward to other women, whether family, friends or a complete stranger, with the hope that their experience, hope and knowledge will help others.
The book’s creator, Kezia Luckett, will also be speaking at Women Work.
For more information, see www.womenofcontribution.com
