Celebrating International Women’s Day – Global Woman’s Path to Financial Freedom
Centuries of shying away from money, placing our financial plans in the hands of fathers, brothers and husbands, women are taking the reins. No longer are we hesitant to place our financial needs first. ‘I love money!’ chanted 100 women yesterday at the Global Woman Financial Empowerment Conference in Richmond, a beautiful part of London, just 8 miles from the centre. A concoction of celebration, knowledge and community spirit, the women of Global Woman Club came together yesterday to celebrate International Women’s Day.
With a myriad of voices that deserve a microphone, from women of colour, women leading the fight for climate change, LGBTQ+ to the women at war in Ukraine, there are endless groups of women that are battling to be heard in our fight for gender equality. A nod to the bravery of Ukraine, the global women were dressed in the colours of the flag, blue and yellow, showing their support, with donations being made throughout the day. With the support of Mirela Sula and the encouraging words of Lady Kendall Jagger, together we raised £725, with donations still being made every minute.
‘As Ukraine weeps, we as the world are supporting Ukraine – yesterday I asked for every global woman to support the people of Ukraine, and we stood in the colours saying we support you,’ shared Lady Kendall.
With a seat at the table of finance, with this year’s theme #BreaktheBias in mind, Global Woman brought together businesswoman, entrepreneurs and career professionals to shine a spotlight on financial empowerment. With a full conference room of women and some men in the room and a global audience watching in our virtual room, women from all corners of the world from France, Sweden, US, Mongolia and India, tuned in for a full day of financial knowledge and empowerment.
We spoke to Aline Uara, a Global Woman who had travelled from France to join us at the event. Just like many of the women in the room who were scribbling away, Aline said, ‘I’m here with my notes to put the most important points into practice.’ When we questioned her decision to travel, Aline shared, ‘There is still a vibration of fear in Paris’, a drastic difference to the post-pandemic situation in London. With events turning to Zoom over the last years, and in-person events with very small audiences, Aline was delighted to join us in London to get a first-hand experience of the energy.
Greeted by the Global Woman team at the doors, with Tre Lowe on the decks, the women entered the room high in energy, with high fives, dancing, singing and excitement for the day ahead.
Bringing onto stage three different panels, Global Woman, Next Generation and Global Man, the audience were given a 360-degree perspective of women and financial empowerment. But they all had one key message and in the words of Athelia, who had taken time out of her school day to join us, ‘money matters… the next generation is hope that someone else will carry on the legacy for women.’ Highlighting on change, the young girls shared their vision for the future of women.
The panels opened up the room to profound knowledge. Bringing onto stage Dr Dunni, Alexandra Foster, Natasha Waldron and Lady Kendall Jagger, Mirela Sula questioned them on their journey to financial freedom. From the lows to the highs, to insecurities and doubts, the Global Woman panel shared the secrets of financial freedom. ‘Use your money wisely, set yourself goals, make sure you have savings and investments targets, ‘says Alexandra Foster, ‘how are you going to make your money work for you? How are you going to make your money work for your company? How are you going to make your money work for your family?’
‘People tell you that money doesn’t grow on trees. I disagree, it does. Plant that tree, harvest from that tree and sow more seeds…’ – Dr Dunni
With men supporting women, Enas Daeki, Regional Director of Notting Hill London, brought on stage the men’s panel, John Hassard, Baiju Solanki, Allan Kleynhans and Tre Lowe, as they shared their insights into financial awareness.
‘Your access to your wealth is directly proportional to your openness of your mind and your willingness to work.’ – Baiju Solanki
From powerful panels to equally life-changing keynote speeches, the evening was filled with the learning mindset. The Global Woman audience were joined by Jo Davison, John Lee and Vincent Wong and an exclusive presentation by Mirela Sula, as they shared everything from money mindset, secrets of social media and real estate gems. With 10 hours of financial knowledge, notebooks were filled with the expertise of our speakers, ready to be applied to their own business. The day was filled with manifestations from Parul Begum’s ‘I deserve the life I want’, to Jo Davison’s ‘I am a money magnet’ and to end it all as Roneish Myers says, ‘Go and make that money!’
