Very often as a little girl, then as a young woman, I have suffered my lot of discrimination. I was brought up with brothers; I grew up in a boys' world. You have to elbow your way in. When you come with that sentiment of having been in a minority for a long period of time, then you are much more attentive to minorities.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the struggles of facing discrimination and the importance of advocating for minority rights.
Christine Lagarde reflects on her experiences of discrimination growing up in a male-dominated environment. She emphasizes how these experiences have made her more attuned to the challenges faced by other minorities, suggesting that overcoming personal adversity can foster empathy and advocacy for others.
In practice
This quote can be used to emphasize the importance of inclusion in a diversity training workshop.
In the 2013 Economists Program, we hired 51 percent women, 49 percent men. And the reason for that is that we have a draft from all over the world, and we've hired, for instance, in that group, a good number of Chinese economists - highly qualified, all Ph.D.s from the best universities of the world. And guess what? They're all women.
Tackling climate change is a collective endeavour, it means collective accountability and it's not too late
I have lived with extraordinary women, whether it was my grandmother, my mother. My father passed away when I was 16... I was witness to a woman who single handedly brought up the entire family and managed to do everything... She was an extraordinary role model for me.
I'm of those who believe that excesses in all matters are not a good idea, whether it's formation of bubbles, whether it's excess in the financial market, whether it's excess of inequality, it has to be watched, it has to be measured, and it has to be anticipated in terms of consequences.
You know, when I sit in meetings and things are very tense and people take things extremely seriously and they invest a lot of their ego, I sometimes think to myself, 'Come on, you know, there's life and there's death and there is love.' And all of that ego business is nonsense compared to that.
To me, leadership is about encouraging people. It's about stimulating them. It's about enabling them to achieve what they can achieve - and to do that with a purpose.
It is under the greatest adversity that there exists the greatest potential for doing good, both for oneself and others.
Early on, I wrote a letter to the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. I was 17. I felt called, moved.
Roll up your sleeves, set your mind to making history, and wage such a fight for liberty that the whole world will respect our sex.
For the sake of a dying, suffering world count the cost, pay the price and set the captives free
Resistance to oppression is second nature.
Those who cannot bravely face danger are the slaves of their attackers.
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