Sometimes we need to learn a lesson the hard way.

And for me, it all started after giving birth to my first child - but really, a hard lesson can come at any time.

Some lessons are like the old hot-pan-on-the-stove - it hurts for a moment, but you’ll probably never experience it again (at least, not on purpose).

Others, like the patriarchal conditioning fed to us from birth, are more of a slow burn that can take much longer to understand, let alone detangle. 

For many of us, it’s a lifelong journey, and it can lead to some pretty low points - but it’s often those low points that make for the best hindsight wisdom. 

It wasn’t until my late teens that I realised the effect this conditioning could have on the way I related to others - and I’m not just talking about men. 

From an early age, many women are taught to distrust and even fear each other, and when you see yourself in competition with other women - the ones who seem bolder, smarter, and even (gasp) prettier than you are - that response almost makes sense. 

Almost. 

But the truth is that these negative feelings are counterproductive at best (and seriously damaging at worst), and they’re also completely unnecessary. 

There’s no need to compete - especially when we’re so much stronger together. 

What we really need is to be visible, but the world has told women an unsettling story - one that goes something like this:  

Don’t stand out. Don’t be too much, or too little, of anything. Be good. Be wary of other women - they can’t be trusted.  

Here’s the thing about that: 

We all deserve to set big goals just for ourselves and experience the satisfaction of achieving them - and a truly independent woman is a force to be reckoned with. 

But when we work together, we are unstoppable. 

This, I realised after taking on one of the most challenging experiences of my life in a Swedish hospital - and winning. 

This episode of How to Flourish Online is about that experience, but it’s also about an idea I hope every woman is able to accept and embrace: 

Maybe - just maybe - you don’t need what you’ve been told to ask for. 

You don’t need permission. Hell, you don’t even need a man (although some of them are pretty great).     

What you need is the influence and inspiration of women who have been through it all and come out the other side - and that is what Flourish Onlineis all about.

So what’s this conversation really about?

• The philosophy that became Flourish Online 
• The ugly truth behind our patriarchal society and our conditioning  
• The real power of womanhood 
• Why you need to put your offering out into the world

Why you should listen 

This episode goes to the core of what feminism and freedom means to me. If you’ve ever felt as though you were not strong or brave enough to go after what you want, this story might just inspire you to think differently. 

Links 

Amy Taylor-Kabbaz

www.flourishonline.com.au 

You can quote me on that…

“I had been conditioned to believe I was weaker or less important than the men in my field, when in fact I - and every woman like me - was