Inspiring Modern Irish Women

Mc Kenzie

Im looking for some inspiration from modern Irish women, to see how they reached there goals and how they got to where they are now.

Does any one know any good blogs or diarys/website i could look up.

Im not having much luck as of yet :rolleyes:

Your help would be much appreciated

Thank you

girl2

You could think about some of the Irish designers?

Or maybe the likes of Orla Corr (McAvoy) - she has won awards in the business world lately.

gara

I think Miriam O'Callaghan is an inspiration -8 kids, RTE radio and tv positions, looks good, intelligent and personable all at the same time. I have a lot of respect for her

WaltKowalski

I don't get the fuss about Miriam O'Callaghan myself.

Lately, I admire Joan Burton and Katie Taylor.

http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/independent-woman/irelands-20-most-influential-women-2872570.html

Mc Kenzie

gara wrote: »

I think Miriam O'Callaghan is an inspiration -8 kids, RTE radio and tv positions, looks good, intelligent and personable all at the same time. I have a lot of respect for her

Ah yes i admire her myself must look her up thanks

Ophiopogon

I don't get the Miriam O' Callaghan thing either, I don't like her on screen personality and have not seen much in her private life to admire either. But maybe I'm missing something.

I would definitely admire Katie Taylor strength, both physically and mentally, I can't think of anyone else tbh, but then I find it hard to admire someone I don't know personally.

FairytaleGirl

I think Marian Keyes is amazing.

She overcame alcoholisim to become the famous author she now is, and very recenlty has overcome an extreme bout of depression, where she was actually envisioning her own suicide everyday.

She not only shares her own struggles but i think they manner in which she does it erases shame and social stigma.

Amazing Woman.

http://www.mariankeyes.com/Home

Wompa1

Katie Taylor is an obvious one. She's multi-talented. Mmm.. Gráinne Mhaol

Mary Robinson...

From personal experience: I worked with a lady in an IT job for 3 years. IT in Ireland at least is male dominated. This lady was amazing, she kept bringing in the newest technologies out there, would master them and find cool ways to integrate them into our service offering, she'd design applications to automate their use. She would go to customer sites and completely blow them away to the point they'd always request to deal with her. She'd go to speak at conferences and be surrounded by awkward, shifty men who didn't know how to handle her at all.

Success in a career is fleeting...have been pretty successful in my career so far but what's it worth if you don't have anything else going on in your life..work life balance doesn't exist when you get to a certain level at work..is it worth it?

Ellsbells

I don't get why Katie Taylor is such an inspiration. She seems a lovely girl and has done well to get so far but lets remember she has been managed and trained not to worry about anything else in her life. She lives at home and is afforded a life which allows her to concentrate solely on her sport whereas Miriam has studied, worked and paid her way and has 8 kids and a husband to factor in.

I wish Katie all the best but what she has done is solely concentrate on one aspect of her life and not had to worry about anything else.

Jerrica

Ellsbells wrote: »

I wish Katie all the best but what she has done is solely concentrate on one aspect of her life and not had to worry about anything else.

And in doing so sacrificed many parts of her life that her peers would be able to enjoy. She has spent years with the eyes of all the begrudgers of women's boxing watching her, waiting for her to falter. She has spearheaded the not insignificant task of challenging the average Joe soaps' view of women in a very male-dominated sport. On a daily basis she eats, breathes, sleeps her sport. She takes dedication to a new level and has proved herself to be an incredible role-model for any young women in sport, not just her own.

I wouldn't agree at all with her not having to worry about anything else, she's had to worry about her performance under the watchful eye of a nation of hopeful people, and a rake of critics who would be only too delighted to take her down a peg or twenty if she faltered.

I'd rate the difficulty of being an athlete at such high level to be way above and beyond that of a tv presenter. As an athlete you never really get the chance to switch off - your behaviour off the stage/ track/ ring plays just as much a part of your performance as the competition itself does.

Ellsbells

But it's all you have to do??? It's not well rounded but she is a fantastic role model because she does lead a clean and decent life.

miamee

Mc Kenzie wrote: »

Im looking for some inspiration from modern Irish women, to see how they reached there goals and how they got to where they are now.

Does any one know any good blogs or diarys/website i could look up.

Im not having much luck as of yet :rolleyes:

Your help would be much appreciated

Thank you

Hi there,
You might want to take a look through the short-listed blogs for the blog awards...perhaps the Best Personal Blogs, Lifestyle or Health/Wellbeing would have some inspiring blogs by women. I'm not as up to date with blogs as I used to be so I won't try to recommend any specific ones. It's not a bad starting point anyway.

Hope that helps

Ophiopogon

Ellsbells wrote: »

I don't get why Katie Taylor is such an inspiration. She seems a lovely girl and has done well to get so far but lets remember she has been managed and trained not to worry about anything else in her life. She lives at home and is afforded a life which allows her to concentrate solely on her sport whereas Miriam has studied, worked and paid her way and has 8 kids and a husband to factor in.

I wish Katie all the best but what she has done is solely concentrate on one aspect of her life and not had to worry about anything else.

To be fair, Katie trains every day which imo can equate to study/work, we've no idea if she pays her way so I won't comment on that. That just leaves kids and husband...I'm not going to admire someone just for having a family and a job.

Also, I would think tv personality would have agents and that, that manage aspects of their life.

Ellsbells

Oh I don't for a second mean Katie doesn't pay her way - sure I don't know either but my point was that she chose to focus on her ambition to the exclusion of everything else. I don't find pure, naked ambition as something to be admired.

I mean Miriam has slogged at what she does to get to where she is despite having other demands in her time. I admire that.

krudler

Ellsbells wrote: »

I don't get why Katie Taylor is such an inspiration. She seems a lovely girl and has done well to get so far but lets remember she has been managed and trained not to worry about anything else in her life. She lives at home and is afforded a life which allows her to concentrate solely on her sport whereas Miriam has studied, worked and paid her way and has 8 kids and a husband to factor in.

I wish Katie all the best but what she has done is solely concentrate on one aspect of her life and not had to worry about anything else.

How do you know that? she's a world class footballer too, because she trains a lot she has it handy? I hardly think being a tv presenter equates to being an Olympic champion boxer. Nobody asked O'Callaghan to pop out 8 kids.

daenerysstormborn3

Ellsbells wrote: »

I mean Miriam has slogged at what she does to get to where she is despite having other demands in her time. I admire that.

As did Katie Taylor.

I find Katie Taylor more admirable because of everything she has sacrificed to pursue her dreams. That to me is inspiration.

Dolbert

Ellsbells wrote: »

I wish Katie all the best but what she has done is solely concentrate on one aspect of her life and not had to worry about anything else.

Take any world-class athlete or performer and the same will be true of any of them, surely? I don't see how putting in the hours and dedication required to get there is somehow 'easier'

gara

pixiebean22 wrote: »

As did Katie Taylor.
I find Katie Taylor more admirable because of everything she has sacrificed to pursue her dreams. That to me is inspiration.

Boxing is Katie Taylor's passion in life, it's what she loves and does best. Therefore boxing is not a sacrifice for her, it's a priority and she's in a privileged position to able to pursue that so exclusively without having to share her time with anything else.

Miriam O'Callaghan has eight children to clothe, feed, put through college etc and therefore has to work hard to secure a comfortable future for her family.

Both women are slogging it out and are hard-grafters but for very different reasons. One for the prestige of winning Olympic Gold, the other for putting food on the table

daenerysstormborn3

gara wrote: »

Boxing is Katie Taylor's passion in life, it's what she loves and does best. Therefore boxing is not a sacrifice for her, it's a priority and she's in a privileged position to able to pursue that so exclusively without having to share her time with anything else.

Miriam O'Callaghan has eight children to clothe, feed, put through college etc and therefore has to work hard to secure a comfortable future for her family.

Both women are slogging it out and are hard-grafters but for very different reasons. One for the prestige of winning Olympic Gold, the other for putting food on the table

I didn't say boxing was a sacrifice for her, I said everything she gave up is the sacrifice she made to pursue her dream and she deserves praise and she is an inspiration for giving up what most people her age see as a right of passage.

Maybe what Miriam O'Callaghan does is her passion in life also and not merely a way to make a living and support all those kids. And to be fair Miriam O'Callaghan doesn't exactly come from humble beginnings.

Yes, I agree, they are doing what they are doing and are very hard grafters in their own right etc. but I don't agree that Miriam O'Callaghan is more deserving of praise just because she chose to have a load of children.

WaltKowalski

gara wrote: »

Miriam O'Callaghan has eight children to clothe, feed, put through college etc and therefore has to work hard to secure a comfortable future for her family.

If that's how success/inspiration is measured, then Miriam O'C would be way down on the list, when you compare her families' income to that of the majority of Irish families.

gara

pixiebean22 wrote: »

I didn't say boxing was a sacrifice for her, I said everything she gave up is the sacrifice she made to pursue her dream and she deserves praise and she is an inspiration for giving up what most people her age see as a right of passage

You're missing my point entirely -those things you consider her 'giving up' aren't a sacrifice for her because they don't mean anything to her compared to what boxing does.

Things are only a sacrifice if you're depriving yourself of something you love -Katie is doing exactly what she loves therefore there is no sacrifice.

EDIT: I never said Miriam O'Callaghan deserved praise because she had a 'load of children' but because of her strong work ethic, professionalism and academic achievements in addition to coping with the demands that I'm sure are associated with having such a large family.

Most people can barely arrive home from a 9-5 on a Monday evening without feeling harassed, whereas she somehow manages to pull off an incredibly busy work schedule whilst maintaining a happy home life, all whilst looking good and wearing a smile -none of that happens by accident and I dislike the way a lot of people assume everything must be fine once you have money or come from anything beyond 'humble beginnings' because that isn't the case at all

Ellsbells

gara wrote: »

You're missing my point entirely -those things you consider her 'giving up' aren't a sacrifice for her because they don't mean anything to her compared to what boxing does.

Things are only a sacrifice if you're depriving yourself of something you love -Katie is doing exactly what she loves therefore there is no sacrifice

Exactly. Look I think she is a fab girl but just don't understand the hero worship that goes on....

daenerysstormborn3

Okay, you don't believe she has made any sacrifices, that still doesn't mean she is not inspirational. I just don't understand how anyone can fail to admire her and all that she has achieved. I certainly don't understand how because she hasn't popped out a load of kids that she doesn't deserve admiration.

gara

pixiebean22 wrote: »

I certainly don't understand how because she hasn't popped out a load of kids that she doesn't deserve admiration.

Where on earth did anyone say she doesn't deserve admiration because she hasn't popped out kids?

daenerysstormborn3

Throughout the thread so far there is an emphasis on how many children Miriam O'Callaghan has and how she has to work so hard to feed them and all the rest of it. There seems to be an implication that because she has all of these kids that she deserves more admiration than someone who doesn't and it has been said in not so many words that all Katie Taylor does is box.

And to be fair, it was you who brought up Katie Taylor's supposed "privileged position" so I was just countering that with the fact that Miriam O'Callaghan wasn't exactly born a pauper herself.

gara

pixiebean22 wrote: »

Throughout the thread so far there is an emphasis on how many children Miriam O'Callaghan has and how she has to work so hard to feed them and all the rest of it. There seems to be an implication that because she has all of these kids that she deserves more admiration than someone who doesn't and it has been said in not so many words that all Katie Taylor does is box.

And to be fair, it was you who brought up Katie Taylor's supposed "privileged position" so I was just countering that with the fact that Miriam O'Callaghan wasn't exactly born a pauper herself.

And you miss the point yet again whilst jumping to conclusions. Privilege means having a special advantage and isn't always financial and Katie Taylor isn't privileged in that way at all, she's from a humble background and lives on a council estate. Katie is privileged on the basis of being able to devote her time exclusively to her passion in life -not many people are in a position to do that as they have other obligations.

Ickle Magoo

Enough folks!

Surely it's obvious that who inspires one person doesn't have to automatically be deemed an inspiration by others/everyone!

No more bickering about Miriam Vs Katie - please!


If you wish to argue/discuss this post, please do so only via PM

gara

Surely it's obvious that posters should be free to discuss their different opinions openly on a discussion board

daenerysstormborn3

gara wrote: »

And you miss the point yet again whilst jumping to conclusions. Privilege means having a special advantage and isn't always financial and Katie Taylor isn't privileged in that way at all, she's from a humble background and lives on a council estate. Katie is privileged on the basis of being able to devote her time exclusively to her passion in life -not many people are in a position to do that as they have other obligations.

Yes, I am aware of that.

Unfollow.

Wibbs

gara wrote: »

Surely it's obvious that posters should be free to discuss their different opinions openly on a discussion board

Did you miss this part of Ickle Magoo's post on the matter? "If you wish to argue/discuss this post, please do so only via PM". Please take it to PM or ease up on the circling the point back and forth and bickering. Thanks

borderlinemeath

I think it was great to see Daraine Mulvihill presenting the paralympics on Channel 4. I had briefly heard of her before but wasn't aware that she was even disabled.

I think she's an inspiration for anybody, fully abled or disabled, she has triumphed over adversity and gone on to do what she wanted to do in a very tough competitive field. And she seems to be bloody good at it, far better than some of the continuity presenters at the regular olympics.