Lindsey Clawson Photography

Besides my bold lip color and neckline, this post is sharing some of my
boldest, bravest decisions this past
year. I was inspired to write this post after watching a TED video by Reshma
Saujani, “Teach girls bravery, not perfection”. Reshma Saujani shares her
journey of running in the New York City congressional race and calls women and
girls to be brave, not to be perfect. Too often, we feel like we have to show the world that we’re
doing well in every aspects of our lives. When in reality we’re
balancing competing priorities, experience career changes, and working on our
relationships with our families and friends.

 As a style blogger, I feel I
have a platform to give you fashion ideas. As
a woman, I feel I have a platform to share my experiences of bravery and
boldness. These experiences are times when I’ve felt vulnerable and insecure.  It’s also these experiences that have helped
me grow this past year.

 

    

 

Here is when I’ve been brave,
bold, and afraid to fail, but still took the leap of faith:

1.       Career: 3 Jobs in 1 Year

 November of
2015, I was 4 months into my new job at the Boeing Company. I had left my sales
job at PepsiCo and joined Boeing’s finance rotation program. I has previously
interned for the Boeing Company and was so excited to be back but I was terrified to work in corporate
finance… I had majored in Sales & Marketing and had only taken the
basics of finance and accounting in business school. I didn’t feel like I was qualified for the position and worried
about the steep learning curve. But my parents encouraged me to take on
something different. They told me that I was smart and capable enough to learn
a new job and function.

So I accepted the finance position and my first 6
months were spent supporting 787 Engineering and next 6 months was spent
supporting 787 Final Assembly. These experiences were starkly different than my
year in sales in PepsiCo. Because I took on something different, I was able
to develop my technical/excel skills. I went to fearing formulas to designing
factory charts that the 787 manufacturing leaders were requesting. I learned
about tracking budgets, requesting leaders for additional money, and basic
finance foundational concepts that will stay with me the rest of my career. Both roles were incredibly challenging, but also incredibly rewarding because I learned so much.

After two rotations in finance, I’m now in a project management role. I found that I’m more
confident to take leaps and changes in my career since I survived that year of
finance.

2.       Travel: Thailand & Philippines

This past spring I traveled to Thailand to visit my
best friend and the Philippines to visit my family I hadn’t seen in 10 years.
It was my first time taking an international flight by myself and my
first international trip as an adult. At first I was really freaked out
to fly into Bangkok and the Manila… I worried I wouldn’t be able to find my
friends or family meeting up with me at the airport. But those worries
disappeared with the incredible experiences I had during my trip. My best
friend Liz and I went to an elephant sanctuary in Kanchanuburi. I got to check
off hanging out with elephants off my bucket list! We got to bathe them in a
river and feed them rice. I will never forget that experience!

In the Philippines, I got to go back to my dad’s
hometown and my mom’s house in the city. Seeing family, island hopping, and
eating too much food was pretty much the extent of my trip. More importantly
though, I got to reconnect with family I hadn’t seen in 10 years. I was
especially excited to see my grandma. She’s smaller than I am and still really
strong in her 70s. I could feel her love with every plate of food she brought
in front of me (lol) and her hugs!

3.       Writing: Fashion, Career, Life

Recently I’ve explored and published other content aside from fashion.
I’ve started talking about career, office wear, and even more
vulnerable blog post on Emma’s Edition. I was terrified to publish “A
Face of AEO” and “My Last Name is Cortes”. I
feared my perspective and experiences would be dismissed. I worried I would turn people off. And
lastly, I was afraid that no one would understand my point of view. But with the
support of my family and friends, I published those two pieces. I was
overwhelmed and so thankful for the incredible support I received. I’m
learning to be bolder, more honest of my experiences, and sharing them
through writing.

This is just three ways I’ve allowed myself to be brave and bold this
year. What are some ways you’ve been brave and bold?

Outfit details:

Floral Tank Top: Free People/Nordstrom Rack

Cardigan: American Eagle Outfitters

Boyfriend Jeans: Nordstrom

Mules: Amazon.com

Photo credit: http://www.lindseyclawson.com/

Thank you for reading!

Love,

Emma