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As informative and important as the data from the Report on the Status of Women and Girls in California™, produced by the Center for Advancement of Women at Mount Saint Mary’s University, it can be a tad overwhelming to face the question of what an individual can do to affect change in society, in legislature, and in corporate America.

But everyone in the sold-out audience of more than 500 at the Skirball Cultural Center could identify with the stories of introspection and passion — interspersed with doses of humor — in the conversations that followed the presentation of the Report’s data, including actionable suggestions that one could adopt in their own lives from that day forward.

Live podcast: “Leadership Purpose With Dr. Robin”

Robin Owens, PhD, associate professor of religious studies and director of the Center for the Advancement of Women, recorded an episode of her popular podcast from the event stage featuring special guest Mallika Chopra, author and CEO of Chopra Global. Her book, “Living with Intent: My Somewhat Messy Journey to Purpose, Peace, and Joy,” details her struggles to find the appropriate balance in her life. Chopra explained that she’d find herself engaged in one activity – speaking to a group of women, for example – but unable to silence the voice in her head during the discussion that questioned everything from why she had so much coffee to whether she had signed a permission slip for her child.

She shared another common trait with women in general: the tendency to compare herself to others and assume she struggled more than they did. She finally gained some perspective after visiting the office of a woman she had long admired — only to find a suitcase in the middle of the room, papers strewn all over, and to be greeted with an apology that the woman had to remedy a situation regarding her son’s forgotten homework. Not surprisingly, this revelation was met with both laughter and a roomful of heads nodding in recognition.

Chopra led the room through a meditation exercise and explained how meditation had affected her family. Her father, Deepak Chopra, the well-known author and advocate for alternative medicine, used to smoke and drink to ease his stress, and the atmosphere at home could be emotionally fraught. Chopra says that the environment became quite serene after both parents adopted the practice of meditation and that it similarly helps her lead a life of intention, balance and purpose.

Panel: Changemakers shaping the landscape for women in Los Angeles

Holly J. Mitchell, the Mount’s Legislator in Residence and member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, served as moderator for the panel comprised of Va Lecia Adams Kellum, PhD, Mount trustee who in two days was to begin her work as CEO of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority; Johanna Burton, director of the Museum of Contemporary Art; President McElaney-Johnson; Maria S. Salinas, president and CEO, Los Angeles area chamber of commerce; and Renata Simril, president and CEO, LA84 Foundation.

The women described their work, shared anecdotes, and answered questions directed to them individually such as “How do you find meaning and purpose in your life?” and “What gives you a glimmer of hope?”

To wrap up the discussion, Mitchell referred to the Mount students in the audience and asked the panelists, “What would you tell your 20-year-old self?”

Adams Kellum: “It’s ok to own our vulnerability. Our vulnerability is our power. It makes us unique in that space to lead and discuss our fears. It’s ok to do that. It doesn’t mean that we’re ill prepared to lead; it means we’re better prepared to lead.”

Burton: “If something’s not recognizable, it’s probably interesting. So go for it. And hold on to your friends.”

President McElaney-Johnson: “Trust your instincts, develop your confidence and get out there and do what you believe in.”

Salinas: Own your power. Have the courage to speak up, speak out because you can do it. You won that power. You’re in the right place, in an organization like Mount Saint Mary’s, and to be supported by such great women. You can only go up.

Simril: “They [men] don’t know more than we know.”

Mitchell interjected: “And the problem is, they know that, but they spend all their time trying to convince us otherwise.” She then answered the question to her 20-year-old self with, “Don’t take yourself so seriously. You will never be 20 again.”

Creating Your Call to Action

The day wrapped up with a session that could be the most challenging for many attendees on a personal level but that also gives an individual the greatest amount of control. Speaker Joanna Bloor spent many years consulting with large corporations on their products, systems or “whatever” and took the many lessons she learned along the way and applied them to how individuals market themselves.

For example, this author refers to herself as a “potentialist.” She encourages women to create a word that sounds awesome and resonates with them and to start using it to describe themselves — and others will eventually adopt it. And in case you’re wondering, a potentialist is somebody who asks what’s next, who looks at what others are doing and asks if there’s a different way of doing it.

According to Bloor, we spend far too much time worrying about the past and allowing it to define us. Our coolest “product” is our future time, which she views as “infinitely upgradeable.” She encourages us to think of our future potential and to help others envision that same future of you, which is easier to recognize when it looks and sounds like you. So, it’s less about reinventing yourself and more about reinventing how you view and portray yourself.

So, give it some thought: Who are you and what do you do? What’s your future? As Bloor describes it, you’re renting a subscription to your future.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

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Read this year’s Report

Read newsroom coverage of the Report’s data