Woman Wednesday: Ellen Ernstberger

When I asked this week's #WomanWednesday, Ellen Ernstberger, what picture she wanted to highlight, this was her response: "Does this one work?? I'm so proud of it. It's from a big presentation I did at work!" Hell yes Ellen, it does work. Also Happy Belated Birthday to this Lady Boss!

When I asked her why she's strong: "Growing up, I don't think I ever would have described myself as strong. Curious? Yes. Determined? Sure. But strong was an adjective that I never would have assigned myself. I was anxious. A rule follower, a worrier, and a people pleaser. "Strong" was reserved for the tough girls. The girls who didn't care what other people thought, and didn't worry about what might go wrong. I spent years trying to "outgrow" these tendencies I considered to be shortcomings of my own, to be more like those "strong" girls

It wasn't until I started my first job after college that I started to realize I needed to lean into my strengths instead of focusing all of my attention on downplaying my perceived weaknesses. My curiosity makes me strong. I will follow a line of thinking until the very bitter end of discussion and research. I am tenacious about delivering results, because I can't leave a job undone. I am excellent at spotting loopholes and planning risk mitigation strategies because my mind spots the gaps in strategies that may allow things to go wrong. My nurturing, people pleasing mind recognizes the humanity in any situation, and I can't in good conscience support business decisions that are self serving or against the common good

I have learned that there is no one definition of strength. And my strength is uniquely my own. So now, instead of obsessing over my weaknesses, I am eagerly looking for new strengths, and new ways to make an impact using them."