THIS LITTLE GIRL IS ME 30 SEP 2021 BY CLAUDIA LA DONNA This little girl is me. Born in the South of Italy, a town of around 50 thousand inhabitants where everyone knows each other. I grew up with the social burden of being always up to standards, best at school, behaving well, being polite. I wanted to be a doctor, a psychologist at some point but was told that it wasn’t a ‘real job’, as any other branch of medicine. Since then I was always open and interested in psychology and in listening to people. My friends always said that I was a great ‘listener’. In the end, I decided to follow my father’s footsteps and studied law following the dream of becoming a successful lawyer as my father was. My exposure to the world started when I moved to Rome for my studies and my interest for the EU strengthened while studying EU law. WOMEN AND THOSE WITH KIDS, HAVE THE ABILITY OF USING SKILLS, SUCH AS EMPATHY AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE, THAT PERFECTLY COMPLEMENT MANAGEMENT AND EXPERTISE. I WOULD SAY ESSENTIAL SKILLS TO BECOME A LEADER. THANKS TO HANOVER’S CULTURE, WE CAN INSTIL IT AND EMPOWER ALL IN THEIR PROFESSIONAL JOURNEY AND GROWTH. When I landed in Brussels my professional pattern started to change as politics, public affairs and communications came in the way. I thought that a big part of my choice was dictated by the inclination to look at the bigger picture, not only the details of law, ‘listen’ and communicate with people. When I took some time off during my professional journey to take care of my first kid and was freelancing, a friend of my mother said “I appreciate you have flexibility in your job, and I hope for you to not have a too ‘demanding’ job afterwards. if I was an employer I would not hire a mother. A mother has another role and so many other distractions that would not make her fit for a demanding job.” I was not surprised by that statement, and I totally ignored it thinking that I would come back to a ‘demanding’ job and would be totally fit for that, without a doubt. Today, Hanover Brussels has more women than men, which is not just a result of my personal fight, promise! Women and those with kids, have the ability of using skills, such as empathy and emotional intelligence, that perfectly complement management and expertise. I would say essential skills to become a leader. Thanks to Hanover’s culture, we can instil it and empower all in their professional journey and growth. My two daughters want to become a model and an astronaut. My message to the girls for the #InspiringGirlsInternational campaign is: follow your aspiration but above all follow your dreams, because if you can dream it you can do it! GET IN TOUCH © Hanover 2021, an AVENIR GLOBAL company | Web design by TWK Read more here. By accepting cookies you can optimise your browsing experience. ACCEPT