Unleash the Girls

It is easy now, after years of experience and study, to throw down a few words and phrases to articulate the situation. But back in the first few years of Jogbra—a growing entity of people trying to work together while headed by two very different young women—we were swimming through murky water toward a sunny shore, but in the daily swimming we had no idea if we were making any headway.

It could feel confusing. Scary. Lonely.

The “lonely” happened for me in great part because my business partner had chosen to treat me as an adversary, not a partner. So although she was a strong swimmer, I felt alone in those new waters. Her attitude did not jibe with the yoga teacher, vegetarian woman I had brought into my business in 1977 and I became confused, saddened, angered, and even ashamed. Her behavior was an anathema to the “nice girl” directives of my childhood.

While painful, it was a tremendous lesson, one I am still, and almost always, in the throes of learning. It is a basic lesson, but one we often forget between classes. To wit: unfortunately, not everyone respects the values and mores of others when they are different from our own. On this occasion my takeaway was: So what new skills and strengths are of use and can be found here, and do I even want to master all of them?