can do

I went to an all girls school. The kind that had blazers and daggy hats, and that 'can do' attitude. I wholeheartedly embraced that attitude and truly believed that we were the women of the future - that we could do anything!

After leaving high school I discovered that it is harder for women. That we might not be able to do everything, or more that our chances are greatly reduced because of our gender. Also, there is perceived equality, but a lot of attitudes still need changing.

This gave my confidence a bit of a battering and I started feeling annoyed. My school had misled us.

At one point I said to my boyfriend, "What am I going to tell my daughters, if I have any? Do I lie, and get their hopes up and tell them what I was told? Or do I tell them the more realistic version?"

And his reply astonished me, he said, "You're going to tell them what you've been told, because you can achieve anything, and so can they."

He said this with complete conviction, without a hint of doubt in his voice, and he made me start to believe it.

Now that I've had more time to reflect and learn, I realise that my school did the right thing. And now I will tell anyone who will listen, especially young girls and women, that you can do anything. You can achieve anything. Yes, the road might be a little bumpier, but someone has to start paving the way.

I am particularly concerned with this topic at the moment for two reasons.

One, because there have been a lot of comments in the media that have shocked me. Comments from influential people who clearly have little faith in the ability of women. It makes me wonder if we will only achieve 'perceived' rather than real equality.

My second reason is a tad more personal. There are a few young women in my life right now that need to hear this message, that need to believe in themselves. I know it is normal for teenage girls to be preoccupied with body image and social networks, but I'm worried that they rely solely on external validation and that their not investing time and effort into their own development, into their own strengths.

Friends, family, acquaintances, they are all important. But your skills, your experiences, who you are as a person, no one can take that away from you.

So I guess what I am trying to say is that, we can do anything, especially if we put time and energy into being the people we want to be. I'm not being particularly articulate but hopefully you get what I mean.

- Dani