in the mind of... paulina

I have to start off by saying… this blog post was A LOT harder for me to write than I thought it would be! Not because it’s a blog post, but because of the topic we chose: What does YWiB mean to you?

I thought about it hard. The first word that comes to my mind is: everything. I’ve been involved with YWiB since before it was what it is today, I’ve seen it s great success and tremendous impact it has, and I have also seen the lowest point of its existence- well, really, the brink of non-existence.

The journey I’ve had with this organization has been tremendously humbling and, thus far in my, albeit not very long yet, career, the single greatest learning experience I have ever had. If I can tell you anything about what YWiB has taught me, is that everything is exactly what you make of it. That applies to any life experience or anything you ever get involved with. You have the incredible opportunity to make an impact wherever you are, and it is your attitude and your willingness to continuously challenge yourself to learn and grow that will make you stand out and achieve your own success. Every time you join a new initiative or start a new relationship, you stand at the crossroads of making it great and rewarding, or… I challenge you to never follow the “or” path.

On the organizational level, YWiB is the intersection between your best girlfriend and your mom. It can help you grow, provide you with the resources to help you with your unique challenges, and allows you to be involved with the organization itself through internship and volunteer opportunities. We open up our resources and connect you with exceptional leaders in the community in the hopes of getting to know your story and seeing your dreams come true.

On a personal level, YWiB has allowed me to build truly powerful connections with ladies I am inspired by every day. The YWiB team (around 50 team members right now!) has the potential to truly change the world through their excitement, passionate pursuance of their goals, and extremely kind and generous hearts. I’m beyond honored to work with them and be able to call them my friends. A girl can only be so lucky!

To those I have already met through YWiB: a tremendous thank you. To those I have not yet had the incredible pleasure to meet: please introduce yourself! We’d love to hear from you and see how YWiB can help build your story…

All my best,

P

in the mind of...nicky

My first YWiB encounter happened when I was studying abroad in Europe during the start of 2008. Paulina (current President of YWiB) and I had planned a SKYPE chat for a long overdue catch up conversation. Unbeknown to me, our chat was happening in the midst of YWiB’s planning for their first ever Beyond Pink conference. It was to my surprise when a black screen popped up in place of where Paulina’s face should be. Me: “Why can’t I see you? I can hear your voice. Is your camera working? Helloooo?”

Paulina: “Yes, it’s working.”

Me: “Why do you sound so tired? What the heck, what’s wrong with this screen?” Pressing random buttons on my laptop.

Paulina: “I just don’t have the lights on in my room.”

Me: “What? Why? Turn it on.”

Paulina: “No, I don’t want to because I have not been getting much sleep and I look really, reallly bad.”

Me: “That is ridiculous, just turn on your lights! Why? What have you been doing?”

Paulina then started to share her story with me, in the dark, of what she had been a part of for the past few months.

So while I was in la-la land skipping through a life of traveling and “cultural learning activities”, there was a group of amazing young women pouring their passion and energy into executing a magical idea into a magical reality.  And when I returned to Vancouver, I knew I wanted to be a part of this magic.

YWiB to me means a place where young women can learn from each other’s stories, everyone has something to share and everyone has something to learn. I love the thought that one person’s story can become an inspiration and motivation for another. My personal hope is that YWiB can be a place where you can find the trust and comfort to build your own story and share it with other young women.

Thanks for reading,

Nicky

in the mind of...demi

The story begins on a rainy night.  (Actually, I have no true recollection of the weather status of that particular night, but it's Vancouver, so rainy is a fair guess.) My sister had told me about a meeting with about a bunch of girls wanting to do something crazy that involves empowerment of women and business and such.  I decided to join - well, why not?  She really wasn't too clear on the description of what the topic is, but that's OK, because NJ Thompson and Claire Frazer announced their vision loud and clear, and I was sold.

Of course, I had many skeptical moments.  I am rather cynical and frankly, not a fan of pink (slowly converting though).  Working with YWiB constantly means radical ideas that are seemingly impossible to pull off, but that is exactly YWiB's magic.  There are a million causes in this world to volunteer one's time to, and there are plenty of intelligent people to work with and learn from, but not all organizations will have the same spirit that YWiB has, and that is the reason why I am proud to be a YWiB girl.

Someone told me that Power is the ability to control scarce resources.  I wish to dispute that and say that Power is the ability to effectively utilize boundless resources.  Resources today are no longer scarce and limited; and more importantly, it no longer only means oil or coal, the most valuable resources now are knowledge and information.

The thing I love about YWiB is its ability to really connect ladies with these resources in a way that makes sense and is not overwhelming.

Don't believe me?  Try us on and find out. ;)

Cheers, -D

In the mind of ... jen sung

YWiB to me represents an opportunity for young women to reach their full potential by sharing their stories with each other. Every person has a story.  Unique to each individual, everyday life lessons of happiness, hardship, accomplishment and more have an amazing impact on those around us.  There is an incredible connection made when two stories overlap, intertwine or are simply shared.  Our team works to ensure that YWiB is the catalyst of merging together the stories of young women today.  This will enable the learning, growth and success of our members.  Read YWiB’s story at http://www.ywib.ca/about and let YWiB be a part of your story.  Together, our accomplishments are truly limitless.

I look forward to meeting you and hearing your story.

in the mind of... anne-marie

We sat down with our fabulous and creative graphic designer, Anne-Marie Leong, and asked her to share her story with us. Thank you for all of your hard work AM- we're so glad to have you on the team!! my name: Anne-Marie Gar Wai Leong

my company: Maïse Design

my graduate: Emily Carr University

childhood ambition: being a dreamer of dreams

fondest memory: waking up to the smell of mom’s homemade French toast

retreat: camping with a whole bunch from the youth organization that I volunteer at

wildest dream: traveling the world while discovering cultures and myself

proudest moment: seeing the youth from an organization that I volunteer at graduate… from middle school to high school and now as they enter university pursuing their career is my proudest moment. I love seeing the people around me succeed and going farther than where I have

award: Applied Arts magazine, student packaging award category 2007

biggest challenge: balancing work and play

keeps me up at night: a great cup of tea or coffee and seeing the formation of the project come into completion

how I give back: helping out the people around me and the people that require my help as much as possible… whether it is design related or just manual labor, I enjoy spending time with people

perfect day: on a breezy warm day, enjoying a glass of wine or coffee out by the harbor with either friends or family

first job: waitressing at a restaurant

favourite quote: He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. - Jim Elliot

inspiration: new experiences and meeting people, but most importantly my family

In the mind of...marica

My first blog. Ever. You’d think this would be easier since it’s supposed to be an introduction to me and how my YWiB story started – and I’m great at talking about myself, ask…well, anyone. It all started at a late night JDC West 2008 meeting – it was going so late because we were all trying to select our ‘team song’. NJ Thompson pulled me aside and told me that I had to be at a very exciting information/idea meeting the following week.

So I went.

And that was it, I was in.

I believe so strongly in the vision of YWiB and the dream of empowering women everywhere with the tools to achieve success in whatever it is that they wish to accomplish. I know that much of my personal growth is attributed to YWiB – the lessons from both working on the team and from participating in events.

My favourite YWiB memories are from working on the Connect! Tradeshow last year. The five Tradeshow Girls decided the best working meetings were best left for sleepovers – and we had many. I believe that the friendships and relationships that have developed and grown through YWiB are just as valuable as the lessons learned from attending events.

Facing the big question marks in life with women in the same situations is just a part of what YWiB is about and what this blog will be about.

Chat again next week!

July Newsletter

Half of the summer has already flown by, and the YWiB team has some excting news to share!

new YWiB website We are excited to share the launch of our new website- www.ywib.ca! Our fabulous web designer Tony Chu and graphic designer Anne-Marie Leong worked hard to bring us the new site, and we must say, we're very proud of it! Some more changes and upgrades will be coming soon to it, so remember to check back! membership package and extended membership Under the member section of our website, you are able to download our official membership package- your membership is your backstage pass to YWiB and this package will share a little more of what you get as a YWiB member. We want to thank you for being such great supporters and, as a token of our appreciation, all current YWiB memberships will be extended untill November 13th 2009- the date of Beyond Pink 2009. join the YWiB team With the fantastic events we have planned for the rest of the year, we want more fabulous ladies to get involved with YWiB. The recruitment information package provides more information for applying and available positions- we hope you take this opportunity to join YWiB's story, and allow YWiB to become part of your story!

YWiB SFU launch Currently, YWiB UBC was our first and only university chapter, and we are now proud to announce that YWiB SFU will be launching in September 2009! If you are a current or past SFU student and want to help YWiB thrive at SFU, please contact Stephanie Wong for more information.