Join Turg and Randy Z as they tackle the tough topics on social injustice, gender bias. This episode brings a very special guest, Sarah Rizkalla – founder and editor-in-chief of New York Minute Magazine and social justice entrepreneur – as she shares her story from the halls Wall Street to her constant fight against naysayers. How do you make it being a social pioneer and voice for women in a world where no one wants you to succeed?
What happens when you realize that the career you chose challenged your values on every level possible?
Sarah shares her experience on Wall Street, working for one of the worst banks on the Street and reflects on her hardships throughout her time there. A very unique experiences, Sarah provides insight on how men and women alike share workplace discrimination on the Street. This social injustice is easy to overlook when you’re caught in the middle of it all. But, if being a woman wasn’t enough, Sarah shares how her background also greatly influenced her journey through thirty. Growing up in Egypt and emigrating to the U.S. at an early age, Sarah parallels her experiences there to the current state of gender equality in the United States.
Clearing the air – empowering women is not about discrediting men
It’s important to realize, however, gender equality can be achieved without alienating or urging hatred toward men. Sarah shares how she makes this a very prominent message in her fight to end social injustice toward women. For equality to happen – power has to be shared, but there isn’t any malice behind that mentality. Sarah emphasizes that in order to shift the balance women need to stand up and make it known they want to achieve that equal playing field.
How do we condition against ignorance in the workplace when it comes to putting effort toward achieving equality?
There are a number of things that men just plain do not know when it comes to treating others equally in the workplace. It takes a conscious effort to create a workplace truly dedicated toward achieving equality. We have to start chipping away at boundaries, making more of an effort to promote equality and make progress toward inclusion. It’s definitely a Millennial mindset to take the progress made and apply it toward the same progressive platform. We are all collectively building toward a a more positive future in order to better serve our interests.
How does culture play a role toward becoming woke in your 30s?
A lot of what we see here in America isn’t indicative of how it is in other countries. Sarah, shares her experience growing up as an Egyptian woman and how that impacted her perspective. It is almost common knowledge that Middle Eastern cultures are male-dominant. Sarah shares how growing up a Christian woman in a society that has clearly defined gender roles led to her awakening. She highlights how her experiences throughout life have helped her align the themes and help spark the fire that fuels her fight for the right solutions. Long term, if we cannot view social issues wit ha more global lens, the future will be any different from the present.
When we face uncertainty because of the insecurities we maintain, how do we rise above to pursue our dreams?
It’s so easy to give in to the social norms and maintain conformity in our lives. Especially in our 30s when everyone is getting married, having kids and starting a family, it’s difficult to fight on and stick true to your beliefs. Sarah shares how culture played a big role in casting doubt on her efforts to start New York Minute Magazine. When she was surrounded by the social norms, pressured by her family and culture to conform to what was labeled as the “right” thing, she had to make a decision. Her decision was to tough it out and stick to what she knew was right for her. Her passion to keep fighting to help educate men and women alike was much greater than any familial or cultural pressure. However, Sarah shares how fear and doubt kept creeping in – even today – and has helped shape her mindset and her fight for women’s rights
Security versus passion versus time – how do we decide?
This is a frequently discussed theme on our show, so how do we decide? It’s interesting to get the differing perspectives behind the motivators that inspire the different guests we have on the show. Sarah shares how knowing what was right. Feeling that we are not enough is a universal emotion. It’s not easy when you’re facing adversity, but when you’re at that crossroad reflecting on your decisions and approach might help lend new perspective to your journey. Sarah brings new perspective to the show by highlighting the fact that her 30s are in the rear-view mirror. Those years were spent mainly focused on her mission and her message. Now, she shares how her personal life is in focus and crossing over into the 40s has given her time to reflect on what she can do differently to conquer her 40s.