Celebrating International Women’s Day

Each year, International Women’s Day is celebrated across the globe and highlights women’s achievements while raising awareness of continued inequalities.

In the spirit of championing women, we’ve collected quotes from some of the women on BBC Maestro to inspire and motivate you to face life’s challenges, embrace your ambitions and find the strength to reach your goals.

Trust the process

Living life as a creative woman can be complicated, fighting against societal expectations as well as those we place on ourselves. In her BBC Maestro course, the romance novelist Jojo Moyes talks about how difficult it can be to make a start with creative work – and believe in our ability – when we’re so afraid of making mistakes or being perfect.

“Have faith in the process. What I’m setting out to produce at this point is a draft. I don’t expect it to be perfect. I expect to create something that I can polish and polish and rework and rework until it bears some resemblance to the shining idea in my head.”

Trust that the path to success isn’t a straight line and learn to accept the bumps along the way. Jojo continues, “Self-doubt is part of the process… I think if anyone finds it that easy, either they’re not telling the truth, or what they’re producing is probably not great.”

Embrace change

Jo Malone CBE built her empire from scratch, turning her passion for fragrance into globally recognised brands. But her journey wasn’t without obstacles. In her course Think Like an Entrepreneur, she speaks candidly about the importance of embracing change and using challenges as stepping stones.

“I embraced change, learnt new things and turned them into huge global brands,” she says. “There are moments where we just want a nice straight road, but those twists and turns teach you valuable lessons.​”

Jo’s story is a testament to resilience and reinvention — key qualities that have defined so many women in business. Let her journey serve as a reminder that success often comes from the courage to step into the unknown and adapt.

Turn setbacks into success

Trinny Woodall knows that setbacks are not the opposite of success — they’re an essential part of it. “There are many times in our lives when something happens and all we can see at the time, is how much of a failure we feel,” says Trinny in her BBC Maestro course. “But in fact, that setback in your life, can propel you forward and really help you to learn for something in the future – to do it differently.”

Having started multiple businesses before launching Trinny London, she learned that the greatest lessons often come from things not going to plan.

“I believe every experience you have in life, will bring some value to the next – whether it’s one that at the time you feel is negative, there is a benefit to it, and the crucial thing is not to look back, and to just look forward.”

You don’t need permission

Isabel Allende believes that you don’t need anyone’s approval to tell your story, share your truth, or pursue your passions. Don’t be afraid to take up space, to be heard, or to create. Isabel reminds us that we are in charge of our own narratives.

“If you make a mistake, you can correct it; if you don’t like the story, you can change it; if you are stuck, you can find a way round it. You are the storyteller.”

Own your voice – no one else has one quite like it.

Carve your own path

At a young age, Malorie Blackman was struck by a lack of diversity in the fiction she was reading – so she decided to be a catalyst for change.

“I spent practically every Saturday from the age of 7 to 14 in my local library,” says Malorie in her BBC Maestro writing course. “In all those thousands of books, over all those years, I never read a single book that featured a black character. So, I started writing my own.”

Today, Malorie has a writing career spanning 30 years and has published over 70 books, including Noughts & Crosses, which later became a successful BBC television drama.

Don’t let fear guide you

Evy Poumpouras has spent her career in high-stakes environments, from serving as a Secret Service agent to interrogating some of the world’s most dangerous criminals. She teaches that fear is inevitable, but how you respond to it is what defines you.

“When you are listening to fear, you are using that to guide your choices and, in those moments, you are not listening to yourself,” says Evy, in her course The Art of Influence. And that’s no way to build confidence. “Confidence is built through action.”

Push past fear, take bold steps forward, and you’ll also inspire others to do the same.

Challenge the status quo

No matter what industry you work in, there will always be an element of the status quo. If you try to challenge something, you may be met with the response, ‘That’s just the way it’s always been’.

Sometimes, standing up and challenging the status quo can be daunting. Still, it’s one way that women can forge a path for one another – particularly in traditionally male-dominated industries. Consider former Poet Laureate and T.S. Elliot Prize-winner, Carol Ann Duffy, who decided to go against the grain and create a poetry collection featuring only women writers.

“When I was growing up, very few anthologies had women poets in them,” says Carol Ann in her BBC Maestro course on writing poetry. “So, I decided to put together a book. And I deliberately had only women poets. This was very important for me to do as a poet because if you want to help people write, then you have to encourage them to read.”

Build your confidence

We all understand how important confidence is. But if you’re feeling low in confidence, what’s the best way to build yourself up? 
 
Doreen Lawrence, mother of Stephen Lawrence and a champion of monumental law change in the UK, says, “I believe that once you educate yourself, that can take you anywhere in the world, and it gives you that inner confidence.” 
 
In Doreen’s BBC Maestro course, Finding The Inner Strength, she says “When I first went into the House of Lords, that was a nerve-wracking environment; for someone like me, it was very out of my comfort zone.” 
 
She adds, “I would advise anybody that’s been put into a situation where they feel unworthy, just take a deep breath and dive in – because it gets easier. It takes practice to build confidence.”

Believe your best is yet to come

Despite over 50 years of working as a graphic designer, industry legend Paula Scher wholeheartedly believes in her ability to continue creating great work.

In her BBC Maestro graphic design course, she says, “I always think that I haven’t done my best work yet and that the next job is going to be the really good one.”

It really is never too late to do your best work. So, wherever you are in your creative journey, get started on today’s brilliant idea with a little help from our range of online courses.