The second session in the AONTAS Learners as Leaders programme Together in the Telling was faciliated by our EU Projects Officer Ecem, and was called “I am Remarkable”. This approach originated in a Google initiative, that was designed to empower women and people from under-represented groups to celebrate achievements in their personal and professional lives. It is all about confidence-building and encouraging participants to challenge negative social perceptions about self-promotion. As part of the session, Ecem worked with the women to interrogate and change their perceptions of gender norms and the idea of “imposter syndrome”. Deborah also spoke about the importance of adult learners – who have returned to education – telling their stories and sharing their experiences with others, and how this can have a positive effect on someone and perhaps encourage them to try learning something new too.

At the end of the session, the women involved were asked to think of three things about themselves, starting with the phrase “I am remarkable because …” They had ten minutes to prepare an answer, and then each participant reported back to the group. Some said it wasn’t easy to remember things they had achieved, or to say them out loud.

In response to this, Deborah said: “Once, my teacher at my course asked what I’ve accomplished that morning. And I couldn’t find anything to say. I couldn’t think of one thing that I accomplished on that day – nothing important. But then she told me, ‘You woke up, woke up your kids, dropped them at school, put together yourself, and came to your course this morning. There are many things you’ve accomplished this morning. Be proud of yourself.’ That was a shocking moment for me. And now, today, writing and sharing things that make me feel remarkable helps me realise how much I’ve grown, and how I’ve developed self-love over the years. This is something I learned and I feel proud.”

One of the participants, Yetunde, told the group that “writing and saying ‘I am remarkable’ out loud makes me feel amazing!’”

The positive atmosphere that resulted from this approach helped in our final stage of the programme, when we looked at getting involved in podcasting and other arenas for the women to tell their own stories.