New York City

Last spring a dream came true for me–in two parts

First, as I stood in the New York City boardroom of Raymond James major money center bank about to give a presentation to a select group of business leaders, I was deeply moved as I gazed around the room and acknowledged the thirty-six powerful, successful, and highly accomplished women gathered at the table. My eyes fixed on each of them: Federal Reserve Bank executives, real estate moguls, entrepreneurs, and CEOs and COOs of multi-million dollar companies. And the view from behind the podium made me realize that maybe, just maybe, women are beginning to take their rightful place in positions of responsibility in the fabric of our culture. This shift is too long coming. Thirty years ago when I started my career, only 10% of financial advisors were women. Today that figure is 12%. Only 10% of corporate boards include more than one woman. Are there no women to be found?

Consider this: More than 50% of law school graduates are women and more than 50% of new doctors are women. Companies need to be held accountable to add more diversity to their boards. Let's not let another thirty years go by before our country benefits from the minds and hearts and sound judgment of 50% of our population. If you work for a company that has not made it a priority to increase the number of women on its board of directors, take a minute to voice your concerns. If you'd like to do more, check out www.2020wob.com.

The second part of my dream was speaking to this group on the topic of "Expecting the Unexpected—how to build your resilience reserves." What a privilege to have the opportunity to share stories, including my own, of resilience and recovery in the face of the unexpected. My deepest thanks to Jaye Smith from Breakwater Consulting for inviting her contacts in New York to the presentation, and to my amazing team who helped me set it up. And thank you to all the women who took time to attend, to learn, and to share with each other.

Exciting possibilities for growth and expansion seem to be in the air these days. I like this new wind that's blowing our way.