Emerson Empowers Young Female Leaders with Women2Women Conference

To say attending the Women2Women conference in 2022 in Bahrain was a transformational experience would be an understatement, said Israela Brill-Cass.

“Since then, I’ve connected with hundreds of young women from around the world at the W2W conference,” said Brill-Cass, a senior affiliated faculty member in Communication Studies. “They are exceptional, outgoing, and eager to make a difference in the world.”

The W2W is specifically developed to provide rising young women leaders, ages 15 to 19, with the skills needed to succeed in our global community. As Brill-Cass has experienced and fostered, W2W builds a network of promising young women from around the world, while engaging them in the issues that define their lives, providing them with the tools, relationships and opportunities required to lead.

This summer, from July 23 through August 1, Emerson College is hosting the Women2Women conference, and will do so moving forward in coming years.

“Having 90 young women change agents at Emerson epitomizes President Jay Bernhardt’s goal of focusing on Emerson’s rich tradition of storytelling in the communication and arts,” said Communication Studies Chair Greg Payne, who is presenting on Real News vs. Fake News. “Emerson offers these 90 young women the opportunity to work with professors in Communication Studies in refining their rhetorical skills, as well as insights and workshops from professors from Harvard, Bentley, executive coaches and industry leaders from Bain Capital, among others.”

Communication Studies faculty members Brill-Cass, Senior Lecturer Keri Thompson, and Assistant Professor Deion Hawkins, will lead sessions during the conference.

Brill-Cass is presenting The Art of Negotiation and Difficult Conversations, skills that are integral to leading successfully.

“We know that women’s voices are given less weight and importance than men’s voices, and in order to lead effectively, your voice needs to be heard,” said Brill-Cass. “Conflict is a fact of life, and being able to collaborate with others through differences is key to getting others to follow your lead. Negotiation is simply a strategic conversation with an objective. Successful leaders have both of these skills.”

Brill-Cass spoke about ways to effectively engage with a person who has a different opinion.

“Active listening – which includes removing distractions to focus on the speaker, suspending judgment and focusing on what the speaker is saying instead of thinking about how you’ll respond – is the most effective way to engage with someone who has a different opinion than you,” said Brill-Cass. “It validates the speaker without necessarily agreeing with them, and it has a persuasive effect, meaning it gives the speaker space to consider the other side of the argument without being forced into it.”

She added that being curious by asking open-ended questions is helpful to gain understanding, and helps take people out of a defensive posture.

Thompson is talking about how to battle imposter syndrome.

“Imposter syndrome is very common in young people, high achievers, and women. Young female leaders typically fit into all three of those categories, and are prime candidates to feel imposter syndrome,” said Thompson. “These feelings can prevent young women from speaking up, taking risks, or serving in leadership roles. We need more young women across the world to use their voices and talents in every area of society.”

Thompson provided ways to address imposter syndrome.

“First, acknowledge that this is more common than we realize. Be kind to yourself and don’t be afraid to ask people for help and advice,” said Thompson. “Take the time to seek mentors who can help and advise you and try to say yes to opportunities that may seem scary or intimidating. Let go of perfectionism and throw your hat into the ring even when you are scared. Also work on learning to distinguish the difference between humility and fear.”  

Hawkins will lead a session on the Basics of Public Speaking, where participants will learn to “build the skills and confidence needed to address any audience.”

Payne said hosting the conference is a wonderful opportunity to introduce Emerson young female leaders from around the world.

“Emerson has a great opportunity to showcase our rich legacy of leadership in storytelling in communication and the arts which hopefully will result in many of these students coming to Emerson,” said Payne. “We will provide students info on our programs as well as the opportunity to meet with students, faculty and alumni.”