by Lex Schroeder
Being a part of the Powerbitches community has been one of the best experiences of my 30s. After years of trying to build feminist spaces in other excellent, but not-so-feminist communities of practice, this community came as a wonderful surprise. It reminds me of the women I read about in the cultural anthropologist Mary Catherine Bateson’s book, Composing a Life (1989). One of the main reasons it is so powerful is because even when it is hard, the womxn in this community seem to allow for deep points of difference.
Inspired by the strength and generosity of this Powerbitches community and a recent conversation my fellow Leadership Council members and I had about the future of feminist business during and post-COVID-19, I wanted to know more about how my colleagues were navigating this time in their own lives and work. I was reflecting on these same things myself. So in April, I interviewed Sam Grone, Rachel Hills, Meenakshi Menon, and Korin Mills by email. Per usual, I was struck by their honesty and candor. We hope these messages are useful to you during these times.
Sam Grone
Sr. Product Manager, Compass
What does moving through the world with power look like to you right now?
At work, it's hard because so much of our presence is physical. But I'm paying more attention to tone, inclusion, making sure everyone's voice is heard on a call, and not being afraid to speak up or to continue speaking when someone talks over me. It's difficult, but not impossible. I also make sure to point out when someone has been talked over, i.e., "Yvonne, I think you were saying something." or "Yvonne, you've been trying to speak, go ahead." or "I want to hear what Yvonne has to say."
Outside of work, it's remaining optimistic and trying to create optimism in others where I can by being extra polite, considerate, or friendly. We have [fewer interactions] these days, so the chance to make each one magical is amplified. You really can make that person's day… For me this is saying a sincere "thank you" to cashiers, tipping really well for take-out and delivery, or waving and smiling (from a distance) to others when I see them.
What are your hopes for the future of your business and/or creative endeavor?
I work for a large start-up which has had a few struggles in this time, but is surviving for now. My hope is that we adapt to the current state and [thrive] and make our customers' lives easier, while this gray-space continues. Once we get past this, we should be able to, as much as possible, pick up where we left off and continue being productive and customer-centric. It's this in-between adaptive time that's hard: How much energy do we put into a temporary solution, versus betting that the duration will be short and just accepting that things will be subpar for the moment?
What work or activism is inspiring you these days? What resources, if any, do you want other people to know about?
I'm inspired by the nightly #clapbecausewecare movement (7 pm, everywhere, every day!). It's amazing what humans can do when we put our minds to use for good. I'm also inspired that we are all in this together; my favorite NPR shows like "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" and "Ask Me Another" have all transitioned to recording from home, sans audience. Stephen Colbert taped his first show at home from his bathtub. This is really an everyone problem and no one is excluded. We're all in this together.
Rachel Hills
Founder of Powerbitches Gather, Feminist Author and Producer
What does moving through the world with power look like to you right now?
I don’t feel powerful right now, and I’m okay with that. I don’t think we have to be inspirational figures at all times; sometimes it’s okay to just be human.
Right now, my days revolve around a precarious balance of keeping on top of my highest yield freelance work and caring for a demanding toddler, while my partner does the same. There is so much more that I would like to be doing and contributing than I currently have the capacity to give, and that’s a constant frustration for me: as the founder of Powerbitches, it’s hard not to be as productive as I’d like to be. That said, I don’t feel powerless right now, either. This is a time in which all of our decisions have real consequences for how the pandemic turns out—from how we socially isolate, to how we show up for our communities—and I am feeling acutely right now the degree to which we are all interconnected and interdependent.
What are your hopes for the future of your business and/or creative endeavor?
I feel a renewed urge to use my voice, both as a thinker and a vehicle for other people’s stories. I spent the first decade of my career working as a journalist, author, and public speaker, but have pushed it to the wayside in the last couple of years... But lately, I’ve been thinking about writing as a form of service and a gift… What insights, empathy, and self-knowledge am I holding back from others when I choose not to use my voice?
What work or activism is inspiring you these days? What resources, if any, do you want other people to know about?
I’m grateful to all the artists who have been sharing their work digitally in this time. I’ve been tuning into Sofar Sounds’ online listening room, which has exposed me to indie musicians whose gigs I probably wouldn’t have been able to go to pre-pandemic (that whole parent-of-a-young-kid thing). I’ve checked out Tribeca Film Festival shorts while putting my son to bed. I’m loving Non Kuramoto’s participatory Plays For A Time of Social Distancing, which capture the spirit and intentions of live theatre far more than a recorded performance could. And I love Courtney Martin’s thoughtful meditations on life, family, and politics during COVID-19.
Meenakshi Menon
Chief Development Officer, Groundswell Fund
What does moving through the world with power look like to you right now?
COVID-19 has indisputably demonstrated that power is misappropriated in the United States. Those who currently have the least power—grocery store clerks, delivery workers, immigrants, women, working class black and brown communities—disproportionately shoulder the burden of "essential work," without the benefit of equal or even fair pay. Particularly for working class immigrants and communities of color, structural racism and pre-existing cracks in our health system mean that especially during a pandemic, access to quality health care free from bias is not a given. Meanwhile, those with the most power continue to prioritize economic activity and profitability over human lives.
I have been renegotiating my ideas about and relationship to power for the past several years, and the current crisis has only prompted deeper thinking. For me, moving through the world with power is about equity and inclusivity. It's about ensuring that power is not disproportionately held by a minority of elites, but instead about ensuring that more people have a seat at the table.
What are your hopes for the future of your business and/or creative endeavor?
I've felt hopeful witnessing a more community-oriented mentality. Seeing figures online that say that Americans have taken physical distancing seriously, particularly to ensure that those more vulnerable are protected, despite an absence of governmental leadership, has been nothing short of a miracle.
What work or activism is inspiring you these days? What resources, if any, do you want other people to know about?
My days have felt more joyful in seeing the ways that artists have adapted to this new context via technology, increasing their podcast or youtube channels to crank out quality content addressing the challenges we're facing. I've felt particularly supported through the content I've seen on mental health and cooking (there's more to it than just baking sourdough!). My hope is that when the threat posed by the pandemic wanes and we begin to emerge from isolation, rather than a rush to normalcy, we'll collectively renegotiate our ideas and relationships to power and productivity, and emerge with more sustainable, holistic approaches to modern life.
Korin Mills
Chief, Korin Mills, LLCᐧ
What does moving through the world with power look like to you right now?
Right now, power to me is about holding onto my sense of self, my values, and my family's wellness through this crisis. It's not easy, but when I can speak clearly to any given moment and offer reassurance to a loved one or to myself I feel powerful. This moment is fucked up and there's no hope on offer from our federal government which is deeply unsettling. Every moment of clarity and security feels like a win.
What are your hopes for the future of your business and/or creative endeavor?
What I really want for my business is to be a conduit and catalyst for progress. I don't want to dictate the way forward. I want to nurture it so it may grow without bounds.
What work or activism is inspiring you these days? What resources, if any, do you want other people to know about?
Just recently I've been inspired by truth-tellers in powerful positions. I get news by osmosis on Twitter and lately I've been drawn to the feeds of Ayanna Presley, Katie Porter, Bree Newsome Bass, Anand Giridharadas, Jemele Hill, Karine Jean-Pierre, and searching thirstily for more daily. I am deeply inspired by Stacey Abrams' Fair Fight initiative and anything that puts womens' leadership in the spotlight since that's where most of my hope rests.
Lex Schroeder
Freelance Writer/Editor and Co-Founder Feminists at Work
What does moving through the world with power look like to you right now?
I want to stay present. One of the things I love about being a writer/editor is that I can’t do my job if I’m not totally present with the ideas, sentences, and paragraphs in front of me. When I leave my desk, it can be hard to stay present. With so many people and communities hurting right now due to COVID19, and so much being unknown, I realize that some of us still have a choice about how we show up in the world. We get to decide what kind of neighbors and citizens we will be, which companies we will support, what work we want to do. I want to stay present to the reality of this moment so that I can be a better community member.
I want to follow the leadership of women of color, keep listening and learning, keep forming meaningful collaborations in the feminist business community, get over myself, back myself up more... I want to keep taking long walks.
What are your hopes for the future of your business and/or creative endeavor?
I want to continue doing my real work, which has a lot to do with making new work (or new ways of thinking about work) more visible, supporting brilliant womxn thinkers in getting their work out there, and helping teams work together more effectively. I love helping writers and thinkers find their voice on the page, and I also want to get back to doing more writing of my own.
I’d like to be more vocal about the other people and organizations I support. I don’t think people get enough thank you’s for their work. I’m also fascinated by how much good work gets done through various projects and how quickly so many of us forget about it. I think there’s something fundamentally disrespectful about how often we let this happen. I want to lengthen the lifespan of particular pieces of work after they first get released into the world, all bright and shiny and new.
What work or activism is inspiring you these days? What resources, if any, do you want other people to know about?
I hope people know about this Powerbitches community, which feels much more like a community than a “network.” For frontline workers and therapists during this time, I just learned about a new virtual guide to hosting grief circles from the team at The Circle Way that I hope is helpful to folks. I recommend following the work of Common Future (formerly The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies), The Democracy Collaborative, and Supermajority. I recommend checking out BRIDGE’s New Pathways series of talks curated by Gwendolyn VanSant and picking up CV Harquail’s excellent book, Feminism: A Key Idea for Business and Society. I continue to follow the work of Katrine Marçal, Dori Tunstall, and Tuesday Ryan-Hart. I’ve been paying attention to David Byrne’s editorial project reasons to be cheerful.