Messenger and Refinery29 Host Real Ta!k Rooms: The Future of Women’s Leadership

“Women are true forces of nature.” – Aurora James

Women’s History Month may be nearing its close, but that doesn’t mean we’re closing the door on having important dialogue around the issues that impact women the most (think: pay equality, the new era of remote work, and overcoming career challenges). 

We’ve been celebrating fearless female voices during Women’s History Month, and yesterday Messenger and leading women’s media and entertainment company, Refinery29, hosted Real Talk Rooms: The Future of Leadership. Hosted by Refinery29 writer, Ariana Romero, the discussion took place via a Live Messenger Room on Refinery29’s Facebook page and featured “Game-Changing” women, including: Olympian and Founder of the Lindsey Vonn Foundation, Lindsey Vonn, Creative Director and Founder of Brother Vellies and the 15 Percent Pledge, Aurora James, and Messenger’s VP of Product Design, Loredana Crisan.    

The full conversation, which can be viewed here, tackled topics such as breaking down barriers in each panelist’s career field and what advice they have for the next generation of women. Each panelist gave the conversation a fresh perspective. 

When discussing success and making an impact, Aurora talked about how important her support system has been in creating the 15 Percent Pledge. “It was my community that basically launched it, and it was up to me to rise to the occasion,” said Aurora. 

Lindsey also built her career with a focus on being her authentic self. “I always tried to be myself, raise the bar, wear makeup, be different… and to just lean into those ideas while elevating my industry, ski racing. It was successful to an extent, but the next generation needs to carry it even further,” said Lindsey. 

Real Talk Rooms: The Future of Leadership also touched on the development of the “Game-Changing Women” sticker pack and how it can uplift, inspire, and empower other women.

“Stickers help people express how they feel in ways that words cannot,” said Loredana, who is excited that the sticker pack will “bring conversations and ideas about female leaders to millions of people.”

The Game-Changing Women Sticker Pack, which features both Lindsey Vonn and Aurora James, is a collection of custom stickers developed in partnership between Messenger and Refinery29 that spotlights women who have blazed trails in their communities. To access the sticker pack on Messenger, you can download it by clicking here or on the smiley face in the text box of any Messenger conversation. On Instagram Stories, you can access the sticker pack by pressing the sticker tool, selecting “GIF” and searching for any of the following keywords: “Game-Changing Women”, “Strong Women”, “Powerful Voices” and “Refinery29”. In Instagram direct messages, you can press the sticker tool and search for the same keywords.

To check out all the ‘real talk” on the future of leadership from these amazing women, make sure to head to Refinery29’s Facebook page!