Welcome to the first issue of The Women's Leadership Journal!

Every year, the women who attend the 'We are the Leaders We've Been Waiting For' conference tell us that a year's too long to wait.

And although there's nothing to match the benefit of learning together over food and conversation, we're hoping that this journal will provide a little sustenance for the months in between.

Teachers, mothers, artists, writers and community workers are all playing vital leadership roles - whether or not they realise it. So we're hoping that by highlighting the wide range of women who are involved in leadership, this journal will play a part in raising awareness about the leadership role we are each able to play, whether we're running an organisation, a start-up, an NGO or a family.

Isn't it a privilege to be part of a generation where we can quote leadership wisdom from Harvard Business Review and Oprah in the same breath?

A certain level of comfort with contradictions is something that women in leadership have always had to accommodate. But today the digital economy makes it possible to celebrate individuality like never before.

Boundaries between disciplines continue to dissolve and the most exciting minds of our times are able to find the connections (see the review of Reality is Broken below as an example). Then there are women like Melanie Minnaar who take a simple idea and run with it using the power of social networking as a multiplier effect.  Read all about her #TBD campaign below

It's no longer a case of one size fits all and there's never been a better time to step up to the platform. So tell us what you're doing to find your leadership voice and change the world. We look forward to featuring you in this journal soon.

Debby Edelstein

PS: If you're on twitter and want to follow what's happening at 'We are the Leaders We've been Waiting For' on Friday May 27th' in Cape Town, the hashtag is #welead

5 minutes with... Sam Wilson
by Kim Shaw

Sam Wilson is the irreverent and funny editor-in-chief of the Women24, Parent24 and Food24 portals who describes herself as a "feminist, anarchist, binge drinker and renegade parent".

Who do you regard as your all-time female role model/leader?
Ursula K Le Guin. She is a feminist, anarchist, Taoist sci-fi fantasy writer, critic and poet... and when I met her writing in university, I just fell in love with the way she sought to balance the multi-pathed journey of being a woman with integrity, intelligence and constant curiosity.

Read More...

Books that make me jump
by Debby Edelstein

The late Monica Fairall of SAfm once told me that she knew something was great if it inspired her to physical action.

As someone who often feels like jumping out of a chair when exposed to something exciting, it made perfect sense to me and I've never forgotten our conversation. There are certain words, ideas, people and books that are so exciting and inspiring they make me want to jump up on the table. It's my own quirky test of whether I think a new course is going to fly or whether I think a new facilitator has got what it takes. But I most often get this feeling when I read.

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Reality is Broken by Jane McGonigal Reviewed by Debby Edelstein

'Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World' is the somewhat extravagant promise of this book by world-renowned game designer Jane McGonigal. But because my motivation for reading it was more personal than professional, I persisted (besides, I'm a bit of a sucker for anything that promises how we can 'change the world').