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Nothing says inspiring like 340 women in the real estate finance industry joining together at mPowering You! On October 21st in Denver, Colorado, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) presented mPowering You, an event that will go down in history for this powerful and great organization. “It has never happened at the MBA in our 104-year history,” stated Marcia Davies, COO of MBA. “It’s time to be empowered.”
The conversations and ideas generated within this space fostered networking and powerful narratives, and assisted in the creation of decisive branding and career advancements. Featuring sessions like Know and Grow Your Value and Gender and Generations: Driving New Forms of Leadership, the summit strengthened and showcased the value and power of women.
Attendees heard from successful women in the industry, including Mika Brzezinski, New York Times Best-Selling Author and Co-Host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, and Ruth Sherman, Executive Speech Coach & Celebrity Media Trainer, who shared the importance of women knowing their value, mastering their message, owning each moment and unleashing their potential.
“A day like today where we’re focused on women, leadership and knowing our value,” shares Mika Brzezinksi, “is telling everybody that we need to level the playing field.” The fact that these conversations are still happening today indicates how important women’s issues are and what needs to be changed. Events like mPowering You are encouraging women to be that change in the industry.
I had the honor of moderating the Words of Wisdom: What Should I Know? session featuring Patricia Arvielo, President, New American Funding; Kimberly Browne, Managing Director, UBS; Susan Chenoweth Beermann, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Ellie Mae, Inc.; and Kimberly Lanham, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Client Services, Digital Risk, LLC.
From actionable career growth advice to their support for female advancement, these housing ecosystem leaders shared from their wealth of wisdom and experiences rising to the top of the industry. Whether at the peak of a sector or on the way up the ladder, this session delivered inspirational stories that motivated the audience to strive for their individual and collective goals.
Dealing with unconscious bias is something we all face. The session with Kimberly Lanham shared eye-opening statistics about the monetary consequences of unconscious biases. A study by the University of Queensland reveals that blonde women are paid seven percent more than both brunettes and redheads. Yale University released a study that shows male and female scientists, who are trained to filter their own biases, thought that the men were more confident and smarter, and paid them $4,000 a year more than their female counterparts. The women were in agreement that authenticity and confidence are the best tools against prejudice.
Women shared pivotal moments, all with a common thread, about their lives and how it boosted their confidence. Their most difficult times in their lives—the moments when their fears were realized and strengths were tested—were unexpected opportunities for professional and personal growth. All of these women overcame these hurdles with grit and grace, and their ability to adapt and endure through change is what fortified their careers and formed their characters. You never know how strong you are until your strength is tested, and you never know what you are capable of until you put yourself out of your comfort zone.
This applies to our personal lives as well as our professional lives. As I mentioned in the session, we all have a personal life that plays a part in our confidence, so we should not only look to the professional side of our lives. We are fortunate to have outreach groups like these to help us share with one another, encourage each other, and grow together.
The final words of wisdom these influential leaders had for the audience were to find your tribe of other supportive women, ask for what you want, don’t be afraid to be yourself, and always listen to what others have to say. “Bring who you are, and what you’re passionate about, to the table every day,” shared Kimberly Browne. “Be bold about who you are.”
Lisa Sun, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Project Gravitas, echoed this message as she encouraged the audience to “own their moment” during the Choosing Self Confidence session. Sun spoke on the inspiration behind Project Gravitas—a self-described confidence company whose innovative apparel and designs empower women to have confident senses of self—and emphasized the authority of women who know their worth.
The women who attended mPowering You had the opportunity to build relationships with other like-minded executive women in advance of MBA’s Annual Convention and Expo 2017, a pivotal event helping drive the success of real estate finance professionals as industry developments match the speed of our ever-changing technological world.
Women-focused events are taking hold as influential events like mPowering You take a stand in the housing ecosystem. Everyone came away with greater knowledge, understanding and tools they can directly apply to their careers and businesses, the empowerment to be more influential leaders, and a contagious enthusiasm as seen on their beaming faces.
The event brought to light gender imbalances in the industry while providing actionable solutions to bridge the gap. In other words, mPowering You was not all talk; it was about taking action. It was about inspiring women to reach higher in their careers by taking more responsibility and risks, owning their value and letting their voices be heard. Mika Brzezinski illustrated the power in identifying your own definition of success, and the effect of this conviction on pinpointing your goals.
The significance of this synergy and sharing of wisdom can be seen in the impact it had on attendees. As Leora Ruzin, Vice President, Director of Mortgage Product Development, Flagstar Bank, articulates, “I wear my mPower pin with pride, and often speak about how amazing the event [mPowering You] was. For those of you who remember, I am the one that boldly announced my aspirations to one day be the COO of a major mortgage company. I am happy to announce that because of the overwhelming amount of support I received after making that announcement, combined with the support of Flagstar, I have formally enrolled in the MBA’s CMB designation program.”
mPowering You reminded us of the advantages women have at their disposal, such as the characteristics to be great leaders. As speaker Dr. Tracey Wilen, a New York Times Best-Selling Author, said, “Leadership is about relationships, it’s about empowerment, and it’s about trust—all the things that women rank the highest in.”
It was a privilege to represent NAWRB, a leader in women’s economic growth, and speak alongside powerful women leaders about how they managed to break through the glass ceiling and how we can help future generations of women do the same.
Thank you Marcia Davies!