What Amazons Can Teach Us, Why "Second Daughters" Matter, and How You Are Going To Change the World

January 14, 2020

Earlier this week, Russian scientists discovered the tomb of four Amazon warrior women, aged 13-50. Yes, Amazons, as in horse-riding, weapon-wielding Wonder Women. This follows last year’s revelation that the famous remains of a high-ranking Viking commander belonged to a woman, and not to a man, as originally assumed. The horses, shield, and spear she was buried with are what she used to lead her (presumably male) troops into battle.

Who were these women? And what do they tell us about ourselves, thousands of years later, as we fret about “leaning in” and speaking up in meetings? Maybe that we are exactly as capable, and complex, as we know in our hearts that we are.

A deep self-confidence is what allowed Asma Khan, owner of the renowned London restaurant Darjeeling Express, to escape a soul-crushing childhood as a “second daughter” in Kolkata, India. (One daughter is apparently enough in a culture where boys are valued and girls are seen as extra baggage.) Her critically acclaimed restaurant employs only women—giving them a boost in confidence and in life.

So what does all of this mean for you? It means that tiny voice in your head trying to tell you about your own greatness has been right all along. And that you are part of a global family of women who have been proving since the beginning of time that, against all odds, we can do anything.

So take that dream off the shelf and start doing.