In 1908, 15,000 women took to the streets of NYC to march for shorter working hours, decent pay, and the right to vote. That step of action, with the many steps taken after that, birthed what we now know as International Women’s Day (IWD) where globally people celebrate the social, economic, cultural and pollical achievements of women. It’s also a day to educate on gender equality while calling for the continued advancement of positive change towards equality.
The campaign theme for IWD this year, 2023, is #EmbraceEquity with the UN Women’s IWD events centred around the theme ‘Cracking the Code: Innovation for a gender-equal future’.
We have all come a long way in the past 100 years and made many steps for women’s rights. One of those is the increasing number of women in leadership. Across different industries, politics, and business – more women are being recognised in decision-making roles, and they are leading the charge in innovation.
With leadership, comes great responsibility. A lead first leads themselves, then other people, and then the task at hand.
Leadership always starts with people.
Many woman leaders are known for having a strong, personable, and engaging leadership style. This inevitably creates role models of leaders who are women because people feel safe and inspired by those who lead them. It’s easy to make a role model of someone you admire.
But what is behind these key leadership traits you may ask?
Well, one major component of the above skills coming off as effortlessly as they do, is interpersonal skills. Interpersonal skills, often known as soft skills or people skills, are a vital component of strong leadership that can lead to increased employee engagement and well-being.
This is because to have a good team culture, people need their leader to have empathy, communication skills, self-awareness, and the ability to manage their own emotions.
We have so many great examples of effective leadership to reflect on this International Women’s Day – with so many high-level leaders taking charge of their people skills to provide safe and engaging environments for their teams.
Pathways Australia champions International Women’s Day and are experts in leadership training. With the 2023 IWD theme in mind, we are launching a course on International Women’s Day 2023, crafted specifically to teach these vital interpersonal skills.
The Interpersonal Skills For Effective Leadership Course has been innovatively created to support the demand for enhanced interpersonal skills in leadership positions. It recognises the incredible nature and achievements of women leaders while aiming to sharpen skills across communication, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and people management.
Research shows a direct positive correlation between a leader’s interpersonal and people skills/levels of emotional intelligence, with improved employee engagement levels, increased customer service, and ultimate positive impact on organisational results.
Everyone is welcome to attend this course, it is the perfect way to harness the skills that matter greatly in leadership. To effectively lead people, you first must grasp the ability to communicate, self-lead and create environments that are safe for others.
Join us on either the 16th of May in Sydney or the 30th of May in Melbourne for the Interpersonal Skills For Effective Leadership Course. Registration opens on IWD 2023, the 8th of March.
Have questions about our contribution or tracking our impact?
Speak to our team today.
Our Contribution over the last few years:
In 2021, Pathways Australia supported over 1,890 women by assisting them to improve and define their personal and professional development skills. Last year, we challenged ourselves to do better and with the support of NFP and Community Service Organisation Australia-wide, we assisted over 2,110 women with their professional and personal development
Want to know more about Pathways Australia’s contributions to Women and past IWD information? Follow this link.
