Celebrating International Women's Day 2019 │The Women Who Inspire Us

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Here at Kooomo, we wanted to celebrate International Women’s Day 2019 by giving kudos to the women who inspire us on a daily basis. We’re all about women supporting other women and empowering each other to strive for gender equality, #balanceforbetter, and ultimately, change the world!

So we asked the women in Kooomo, as well as some of the amazing women in our own ecosystem of partners to shout out a female that inspires them and tell us the reasons why…

Vanessa Boshart – Business Development Executive

My grandma just turned 90 last January and she is the strongest, yet the sweetest person I’ve ever met.

Her determination, hard work and relentlessness – as well as her kindness, faith and endless love for family make her the most inspiring woman I’ve had the chance to know and the purest soul I’ve had the chance to love.

Shauna Moran – Head of Channel Partnerships

I’m lucky to know a lot of incredible women in my life. One of the most prominent female inspirations in my life is definitely my mam, Jackie. She taught me to be fearless and courageous, to always stay true to my values and to work hard.

She’s an entrepreneur and has created her business from the ground up so she’s one of my biggest mentors. Her resilience and strength in the face of adversity encourage me to always ‘lean in’ to growth opportunities, stay strong and be grateful.

Marta Lo Bracco – Account Manager

Beatrix Kiddo is that female action hero to look at, she is determination, lucidity and strength.

I was very young when I first saw that movie that made me want to one day have those qualities (and that yellow onesie!)

Ultimately I was thrilled to see a movie where the hero was a woman. For the first time a female character who can be at the same level as Rambo and Jackie Chan,

a real warrior, who must also face the difficulties of being a woman:

what do you do if you discover that you’re pregnant during a high-risk mission and you have to deal with it in front of a murderer who wants to kill you?

This is the perfect parable to describe the real warrior women that have to fight for their rights every day.

Irina Ciutacu – SEO Team Leader

Simona Halep is a Romanian professional tennis player, who reached the No 1 Ranking in WTA from 2017 until 2019. Her strength of character, intelligence and “I can” attitude really inspires me.

She won her first major tournament at the 2018 French Open, Rolland Garros, currently ranks as world No. 2 on the WTA Tour, and has won 18 WTA singles titles.

She taught me never to give up on your dream no matter how difficult it might be to reach it.

Patricia Sugrue – Corporate Communications Manager

Vicky Phelan is the Limerick mother who has helped expose the cervical cancer controversy and has been tirelessly campaigning as a Patient advocate despite having terminal cancer herself.

Despite her serious condition, she selflessly continues to promote the need to get tested and has attended government meetings to ensure they do the right thing to clear up this harrowing controversy. What an inspiration to us all!

Michelle McSweeney – Content Marketing Manager

A woman who truly inspires me is Melanie Perkins, the CEO and Co-founder of Canva. Graphic design is such an unbelievable skill, one that takes years, even decades to hone.

Melanie created Canva to empower non-designers to be able to create beautiful visual content in a quick and easy way and the company has grown exponentially over the past couple of years. I really admire Melanie’s drive and ambition, and how important company culture is to her. She says that her focus is on building a company that she and her co-founders enjoy working in themselves, and I think that is something that all businesses should strive for.

Aruna Anand – Technology Partnerships Manager EMEA, Trustpilot

Michelle Obama – she’s not afraid to speak her mind and believes in being herself even in the public eye. She’s confident and stylish and always dresses well on every occasion.

She always appears to juggle her family, career and public commitments perfectly with no stress. Her speeches are always so inspirational. One of my favourite quotes from her: “One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals.”

Claire Staunton – CEO, Circulator

For me, inspiration starts at home. Family, friends and peers. I had an amazing grandmother that took care of us growing up whilst both my Mother and Father were working full time. My mother has always worked (and still does). Unaware at that time, I can now appreciate the sacrifices that were made which I think has given me my drive in life. I have worked from 13 years of age and have always aspired to learn, move forward and be successful in whatever I am doing. That is down to how I was brought up.

Since having my daughter Jessica in 2017 I have a newfound respect not only for women in business but all women trying to manage their career and family. Whether it is working full time or staying at home with the kids. Both are hard and fulfilling at the same time and require a huge level of effort and determination.

Tonia Luykx – Strategic Partnerships, Amazon Pay Ireland & UK

I am inspired by my amazing Mother. She is a very strong, supportive and loving mother, and grandmother.

With my father, they have an amazingly successful business which is the pure result of a lifelong commitment, lots of hard work, and a passion for what they do. Nothing is ever too much for my mum, from helping me and my sisters look after our children, to supporting her three daughters throughout their entire lives, to supporting her husband through good times and bad, and to running a successful business and being the creative brain that drives it from day to day. My Mum is one in a million and she inspires me every day! Thank you Mum x

Sarah Murphy – Marketing Manager, Scurri

Emma Watson. She has not only built a successful career but has used her profile to fight for what she believes in and promote gender equality through her role with the United Nations and the HeforShe campaign.

So now it’s your turn! Celebrate International Women’s Day with us by heading over to the Kooomo Twitter page and telling us about a woman who inspires you using the hashtag #InternationalWomensDay2019!