Stylist 'Life Lessons' Event

Last week Thursday, I attended the Stylist Magazine ‘life lessons’ event, with guest speakers Leyla Hussien, Kirstie Allsopp, and June Sarpong.

In case your wondering who these women are, here is a quick run down for you:

- Leyla Hussien is a psychotherapist and Co-Founder of Daughters of Eve ( a non profit organisation that works to protect girls and young women who are at risk from female genital mutilation (FGM).

- Kirstie Allsopp is a British Television presenter (location, location, location) 

- June Sarpong MBE is a broadcaster and co-founder of WIE (Women: Inspiration and Enterprise network)

The event was held at Ham Yard Hotel, in Soho, stylish location, constant flow of red and white wine (which I loved) and literally got talking to other women while waiting for the event begin…. 

At around 7:00pm the event started and I quickly rushed to the second row to get the best seats in the conference room, yes I was excited to receive some real life lessons!….

Leyla Hussien was the fist to speak “Never forget the power of your own story”

She went on to detail her experience through FGM, which literally brought tears to my eyes, and that once she was cut ‘it was like her soul was being cut’ I can’t even begin to imagine, the emotional scarring she must bare up to this date, let alone physical scarring as a constant reminder - she said that her mission ‘was to make sure her daughter didn’t go through what she went through’.

To think this is something accepted, and deemed as the norm in some cultures is beyond me! Not to mention scary. At first when I heard about the #StopFGM campaign on Twitter I actually had to Google what it was! After reading I felt quite disturbed…My main thoughts at the age of 7 were what was on Disney channel, and girlie sleepovers! Not about anyone cutting my private parts. Leyla really revealed some of the harsh realities that happen around the world. 

Next up to speak was June Sarpong, who I remember for having the glossiest lips on TV! She was an amazing presenter, (personal opinion) and I loved her simply because she was a dark skinned woman with big lips on telly - and she was someone I could identify with.

Her talk was ‘Questioning your beliefs’….”Questioning your beliefs can change your life and the world”.

June went on to speak about misconceptions, and how she prejudged a man on set one day in the USA who was covered with tattoos and appeared ‘ruff and tuff’, only to find out that he was a lovely sound engineer, she went on to explain that as a woman of colour she knows first hand what its like to be judged on something that has nothing to do with ‘what she is’, and there she was judging someone else. From there she started changing her beliefs.

Ok. Pause. I love June - like I stated before, but isn’t this just a general life lesson wrapped in a pretty pink bow!? Don’t get me wrong I did nod along in strong agreement, however I was looking for a real ‘Oprah ah-ha moment’ and I was left feeling underwhelmed.

Last to take the stage was Kirstie Allsopp, ok so where do I start from here?! (Did you read my recent blog about the article she wrote on ‘ditch university and have a baby by 27’) I was so ready to fire questions at her during the q&a - however my perception of Kirsite changed as she gave her talk on the fertility window. It felt as though this talk was an extended version of the article she had with the Telegraph, only with more explanation. 

Kirstie said that ‘women are being lied too’ in terms of how late we can have babies, and that there is a strong emphasis put on careers, rather than building a family, she said that she was lucky enough to have her first child at 32 and her second child at 37 - literally in time before her biological clock was about to burn out! Ok I get that now, I one day do want to have children, however I am very career driven but I guess its all about finding that balance - although not right now….

She spoke about how desperate she was in her 20s to get a boyfriend and have kids, - she even said she had ‘please marry me’ tattooed on her forehead - WOWSER! .

Hold on. 

I get where Kirstie is coming from with her ‘warnings’ or raising awareness, but there is no state of emergency here! As a single woman I would like to meet my partner naturally not as a form of desperation - moving on….

She ended with this note to women: be honest with each other, with your partners, daughters and sons - know that you can have careers at any age, you can go to uni at any age.

Nature is not a feminist and that's just the truth.

Overall I  enjoyed the event, and thought that it was very informative as I was made aware of FGM and my biological clock….However I didn’t feel as though I really learnt any impactful life lessons, it was more of each woman sharing their personal experiences, which I can literally find on their website (#sorrynotsorry) I was there ready with my note pad and pen to write down a real ‘Oprah ah ha moment’ but there was none, not knocking any of the women in fact I applaud them for being able to share such intimate parts of their lives with a bunch of strangers (especially Leyla) -

But maybe Stylist Magazine should rethink naming the event ‘life lessons’ and rather pick a theme for each event #justsaying …I couldn’t really say it was ‘life changing’ - but hey that’s just me, there were plenty of women during the q&a asking Kirstie questions about the fertility window - which could of been a life lesson/ changing moment for them.

V x