leanin
O R I G I N A L LY P U B L I S H E D I N W I N T E R 2 0 1 4
In Winter 2014, authors Kayte Sexton Fry, Sue Kraft Fussell, and Jennifer Loeffelman (neé Levering) came together after participating in an event funded by the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values called Nourish, that created a space for women in the field to have honest dialogue. Following the event, the three put their experiences to paper and wrote the article, “Women Leaning In: Embracing Our Stories and Authentic Selves,” that was featured in the Winter 2014 issue of Perspectives. This article influenced me as a then 24-year-old, new professional, trying to navigate my first job. This topic became an important one to many women and myself after reading Sheryl Sandberg’s top selling book, “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead.” The concept of “leaning in” was one that had not occurred to many women or myself before Sandberg took the leap and published her book. This past summer, I was lucky enough to connect with the authors and talk through the impact this article still has today. 11 PERSPECTIVES Issue #3
While the article was written because of Nourish, a few other pieces also prompted this article’s creation. At the time, Jenny was a presenter for a session focused on Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead at the 2014 AFA Annual Meeting when the concept of women leaning in was starting to resonate with people. This team indicated they wanted to share their stories, examine how we treat each other, reinforce it is okay to be vulnerable when surrounded by support, and discuss how women deserve to be supported within the workplace. At the time, the article represented different stages of where each woman was in their lives. Originally, the authors were nervous to write the article because of the vulnerability it required, but it resulted in great feedback and many readers connected with it’s message. I asked the authors how their thinking has changed or evolved in the four years since the article was originally published. Kayte has since left the field to pursue other passions, but she said this article came up when she was considering her departure, and it was still important to her. The lessons of owning one’s story and decisions helped her navigate this period when it could have been easy to become caught up in the decision-making process. While Kayte believes her thinking has evolved since the original article, she said we still find ourselves in this same context of the work; just in different seasons of life.
