Can I sign my name to this day?
Marilyn Carlson Nelson is 86 years old. She stood on the stage at the 15th Annual TeamWomen Leadership Conference and asked the room a question worth carrying.
"At the end of every day, can I sign my name to this day?"
Not "did I crush it." Not "did I optimize." Sign my name to it. Claim it. Own what I did and how I did it.
Lead With Love
She told the story of being one of the few women in the room in 1970. Instead of pushing her way in, she drew people into her circle. She led with love. When she didn't like what she saw, she fixed it. By the time she was done at Carlson, 43% of the company was women.
We are stronger together. That was her thesis. Said by someone who actually built it.
Use Your Voice
Kim Skanson followed with the kind of clarity that lands when a leader has done the work. Growth happens where comfort ends. Confidence comes after action, not before it. Use other people's doubt as fuel. If it is to be, it's up to me.
Then a twelve-year-old named Tracy Watts sang a cappella, and the room went quiet in that way rooms go quiet when something true is happening.
The fireside chat with Allison Gettings, Jori Miller Sherer, and Brandi Powell brought it home. Lead with grace. Self-doubt is part of healthy leadership. If you repeatedly do hard things, you become more prepared and more resilient. If someone doesn't take you seriously, take yourself seriously. That is where you lead, grow, give back, and support your community.
I was in the room as a visual strategist, capturing the conversation as it unfolded. What I saw is what I see in every room I work in. The women who lead well lead with clarity, care, and a refusal to flinch from the hard stuff. This room was full of them.
Thank you to TeamWomen for building spaces like this one. Thank you to Katie Burke for the warmth. And thank you to Aaron Eggert at Coalition 9 for the invitation.
Marilyn's question is the one I'll be carrying.
Can I sign my name to this day?
At TwoLine Studios, we design immersive experiences, graphic facilitate and our founder, Heather Willems, coaches leaders to reflect on big ideas and put those ideas into action.