At GL events, we first and foremost care for and believe in our people, supporting and developing our staff and the local communities in which our branches operate, this one of the main directives of the GL events Group. This Women's Month we focussed on empowering and inspiring all our special ladies.
Women form a large percentage of our workforce and we are proud to say that we are part of an industry where women are recognised for their achievements and allowed to grow to their full potential. Throughout the events and exhibitions industry, you find many female CEOs, senior executives, managers, and entrepreneurs. All these women are well respected within the industry and often head up or form the core of many of our large industry players and associations.
During our celebrations at the GL events Johannesburg branch, we were fortunate enough to spend some quality time with our female employees and some young ladies from the recovery centre across the road from our offices. We all left the celebrations feeling energised and inspired, thanks to a phenomenal lady who shared her journey and life lessons with us. The message she brought was comforting and empowering and left us all feeling eager to face the challenges ahead in both our personal and professional capacities.
This phenomenal lady is Genine Jacobs - Head of Human Capital and Business Banking at Standard Bank Group. Like most women, Genine has faced and overcome many personal and professional challenges. She left us with the following life lessons:
Fail fast and fail forward
For decades failing has had such bad connotations; now, we have realised the greatest inventions and innovations come through failure. It's okay to make mistakes, but bounce back quickly and be agile. Always learn from your mistakes, ask yourself what lesson you had to learn and don't repeat mistakes. Life will repeat itself mindlessly, unless you become mindful and make a change, always be aware of how you live and how your decisions impact your future.
Release, and learn forgiveness
Nothing is worse than going through life with baggage, keeping grudges or bad memories breeds negativity. Learn to release the past and forgive others, whether they deserve it or not, but most importantly, learn to forgive yourself. Forgive yourself for bad decisions, for failures, for anything that happened in the past that has a negative connection.
Continuous learning
Cultivate a continuous learning spirit; none of us has arrived concerning knowledge. Whether it be formal study, reading or engaging with a mentor, constantly invest in learning. Knowledge is the one thing no one can take from you.
Be, don't try to become
Within these two words, be and becoming, your whole life is contained. Being is enlightenment, becoming is ignorance. Don't try to copy others, don't let stereotypes define you, don't label yourself, understand that you are beautiful, unique, fearfully made. Labels look good on things and bad on people.
Relationship
Have three types of relationships in your life:
With people that are more excelled than you, so you can learn from them, have a mentor or a coach, take counsel.
With people that are following behind you so that you teach, take an interest in other women and supporting them in achieving their goals.
With peers that are running next to you that can challenge you.
Seize your opportunities
The truth is that we only have the present moment to use our potential. Take the risk when an opportunity presents itself, use common sense and wisdom and say yes. Believe you can do it and you are halfway there!
Deal with your issues before your issues deal with you
Be prepared to act in spite of your fears, don't let your spirit be composed of the stories you have been told about why you won't make it, take control. Don't procrastinate; whatever you are facing, tackle those problems today.
Understand that there is purpose in pain
Sadness gives depth. Happiness gives height.
Sadness gives roots. Happiness gives branches.
Happiness is a tree growing reaching for the sky, and sadness is like the roots anchoring it down into the womb of the earth. Both are needed, and the higher a tree grows, simultaneously, the deeper the roots. Without pain, there can be no growth.
Dream
Don't be pushed around by your situations in life, be led by your dreams. Run in your own lane at your own pace; life is not a competition, the only person you should compete with is yourself. Set your own goals, have your own dreams, never stop dreaming.
