Taking Control of your Flight!: 3 Key Takeaways from the Women's emPOWER Session in Atlanta

Do you know how to say “NO” to those tasks taking up space on your to-do list? During Facilisgroup’s Supplier Showcase in Atlanta, they tackled this topic head-on as a part of their Women’s emPOWER initiative. Hosted by Facilisgroup’s emPOWER Committee, the inaugural event for 2024 featured keynote speaker, Holly Brown, Chief Revenue Officer for PCNA. With over 200 guests in attendance, the session featured tips for taking control of their paths and learning the power of saying “NO.” 

“The emPOWER event covered such timely topics and relevant areas of focus for women in leadership across our industry today,” Brown said. “I was thrilled to be a part of the kick-off around ‘the art of strategically saying ‘no’ in leadership’ and look forward to continued learning and engagement from one another in this group of incredible women leaders!”

If you’re curious about what went on during the session or looking to utilize “NO” more in your everyday life, we have you covered. Here are the three main takeaways from the emPOWER session.

Statistics Don’t Lie!

Did you know, according to a study from McKinsey on women in the workplace, 43% of women leaders are burned out, while only 31% of men in the same positions are? Why is that? Well, women are taking more roles in their company that are considered non-promotable at a higher rate than men, leading women to burn out quickly. 

“As women advance in their careers and their responsibilities grow, so does the need for prioritization and strategic thinking,” Brown said.

From the same study, 58% of women under 30 say advancement is important, but so is a work-life balance. Of those women, 67% of them are interested in advancing at companies where they see senior leaders displaying work-life balance.

The Power and Importance of Saying “NO”!

The power “NO” has in our everyday lives is monumental. For starters, saying “NO” guards your time and helps set boundaries from doing tasks that will ultimately waste your time. Plus, saying “NO” to the wrong things allows you to say “YES” to the right things. 

But, when is the right time to say “NO”? Ask yourself: How important is this task? Does this request fit with my goals? Am I even the right person for it? These essential questions will help determine whether this task is in your wheelhouse and help prioritize your day. 

When asked about how to say “NO” without feeling guilty, Brown stated,” Be fiercely unapologetic about saying no to things that don’t help you achieve your professional goals.”

Utilizing and Adopting New Tools

After Brown outlined the importance of saying “NO”, she taught our attendees about a powerful tool to help identify and prioritize urgent versus important tasks in your daily life, the Eisenhower Principle. For those unfamiliar, in a 1954 speech, former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "I have two kinds of problems: the urgent and the important. The urgent are not important, and the important are never urgent.” It is believed this is how he began to organize his workload and priorities. 

To use Eisenhower’s Principle in your life, you’ll start by listing out everything you do in a day or week and place them in one of the four categories: important and urgent, important but not urgent, not important but urgent, and not important and not urgent. This tool can help alleviate all the nonsense on your list and allow you to focus on what’s important. 

The Women’s emPOWER session in Atlanta was just the beginning of what Facilisgroup has in store for the new initiative.

“Our emPOWER Event in Atlanta started us off strong with a program focused on delivering tools and techniques to achieve more and be more successful,” said Michele Dando, emPOWER Committee Chair and Vice President of Supplier Relations for Facilisgroup. “We will continue this messaging throughout 2024 with the Steering Committee driving initiatives around philanthropy, mentorship programs, and continued learning.”