Dancing Round the Handbags® is a self-development book, series of workshops and one-to-one coaching aimed at hard-working women. Using the metaphor of the ‘handbag’ and the ‘dance’, it supports you to create clarity about personal direction whilst maintaining balance between your work and life. Dancing Round the Handbags® uses the metaphors of the dance and the handbag to support you the reader, to reflect on your work and life and make the changes necessary for you to achieve balance as well as what you want from work and life. By tapping into the feminine aspects of leadership, influence and communication, it supports you to de-clutter the handbag that is you, and re-join the dance floor of life; dancing to the tunes that you want to dance to. Dancing Round the Handbags® has already been life-changing for many of the women who attend the workshops and seminars.
The Dance
Chapter 1 in the book is The Dance’. The Dance is a metaphor for what women do each day; dance to the tunes of others. These are all the day-to-day tunes that either project women towards their purpose and goals, or hold them back, creating imbalance, stress and guilt. The multiple roles of mother, wife, boss, friend, daughter, lover, cook, and colleague etc. means that a woman sometimes dances to too many tunes all at once. This often results in rarely having time for self, soon forgetting her own dreams and doubting her unique potential; her own music.
The Handbag
The handbag in this book is a metaphor for being female and the remaining Chapters are different handbag items; each being a metaphor for varying aspects of a woman’s work and life. For example, The Mirror chapter explores her image; how she sees herself, The Lipstick chapter explores how women mask stress to show resilience and coping (‘putting on a brave face’) and The Diary chapter explores work/life time and priorities. Each of the 11 chapters are symbolic of items in a woman’s handbag.
The Vision
To create balance for people and business across the world, so that we leave a lasting, healthy and positive legacy for future generations.
Beyond the personal development that the book can offer, it is a catalyst to change the way we work and live. Our societies, workplaces and families are out of balance; they have become too masculine in their style and operation. Our focus has become that of a human doing, not a human being, and it is essential that we redress the balance of who we are in order to maintain societal wellbeing and create a lasting legacy for future generations. Our workplaces are performance and target driven, where men and masculine cultures prevail. These can be exhausting for many women and men. The world of work is beginning to change, and we must move toward and environment of balance – between work and life, engagement and performance, men and women, collaboration & competition, creative and structured. We must lead our world in a balanced way – both feet dancing towards a more balanced future.
By reviewing your dances and de-cluttering the handbag that is you, you will return to the dance floor of life, ready to dance to your own music.
Dancing Round the Handbags® will be launched in the UK in November. It will be available to buy in hard and soft copy. It will be augmented by workshops, seminars and retreats. Tools, exercises and audio material will be available online.
Dance Your Best Life!
