Loud Woman, you probably are not living your Loudest life. Burdened by societal expectations for women to be small and Quiet, you have been taught to put your needs last, to always show good manners, and to see other women as competition instead of allies.
Thatâs how Jill was tooâoverly accommodating, giving, polite, and selfless. But as she watched Dr. Christine Blasey Ford bravely tell her story and testify about Brett Kavanaughâs attempted rape, Jill thought, this is what a Loud Woman looks like. Speaking up and telling the truthâand doing so without apology or explanation. Inspired by Dr. Fordâs act of honest courage, Jill realized, right then and there, that it was time for her to get Louder too.
Loud Woman is part memoir, part self-help, all manifesto, confession, and plea. Inside these pages you will find a guidebook on how to live a Louder lifeâfrom how to push through your fears to trusting yourself more. Itâs Jillâs hope that, after reading Loud Woman, you too will look in the mirror and proclaim, âThis is what a Loud Woman looks like.â
Loud Woman, you probably are not living your Loudest life. Burdened by societal expectations for women to be small and Quiet, you have been taught to put your needs last, to always show good manners, and to see other women as competition instead of allies.
Thatâs how Jill was tooâoverly accommodating, giving, polite, and selfless. But as she watched Dr. Christine Blasey Ford bravely tell her story and testify about Brett Kavanaughâs attempted rape, Jill thought, this is what a Loud Woman looks like. Speaking up and telling the truthâand doing so without apology or explanation. Inspired by Dr. Fordâs act of honest courage, Jill realized, right then and there, that it was time for her to get Louder too.
Loud Woman is part memoir, part self-help, all manifesto, confession, and plea. Inside these pages you will find a guidebook on how to live a Louder lifeâfrom how to push through your fears to trusting yourself more. Itâs Jillâs hope that, after reading Loud Woman, you too will look in the mirror and proclaim, âThis is what a Loud Woman looks like.â
âWhose budget will be paying for this?â I asked, as I scribbled down the instructions from the vice president and directors sitting around the conference room table. We were meeting about a new patient safety initiative, and the management team had a laundry list of items they needed my marketing team to create.
âDonât worry about that,â the vice president responded, irritation edging her voice.
I did have to worry about it though. As a marketing manager, knowing who was paying for a project was an important part of my job.
I eyed the vice president, willing her to answer me. She flipped the page over in her notebook and scratched down something on the page. I never did get an answer to my budget question.
The next day, my director pulled me into her office. She had just met with this same vice president, who told my director that I was âout of lineâ for asking the budget question and my tone was âdisrespectful.â The vice president then told my director that I was not there to ask questions. I was there to gather information so I could âdo my job.â
I almost laughed. I should have guessed that my question would not be appreciated; it was so typical of the political bullshit that permeated from my employer.
Despite my inclination to laugh, I also was bewildered: How am I supposed to do my job if I canât ask questions?
Hereâs the thing: I was getting counseled for asking a budget question; however, I knew it was much more than that.
What I was really being counseled on was my Loudnessâhow I spoke up, how I asked for what I wanted, how I had boundaries around my time, and how I did not tolerate being interrupted.
What I really was being asked to do was to take up less space, keep my mouth shut, and do my job in the quietest way possible.
My employer embodied a classic patriarchal structure. Most of our senior management team were older white guys. Our outdated dress code specified skirt lengths, panty hose requirements, and no open toe shoes (even during Florida summers).
On the surface, my employer looked like a great place for women to work, and it was, as long as women played by the rules, which included deferring to men in positions above us and not rocking the boat (or in my case, asking questions about the marketing budget).
In other words, we were expected to Quiet.
I bet you have been told, time and time again, to be Quiet too. Inside though, you are craving something different, better, more aligned to your soul. You do not want to be Quiet anymore. You want to be Loudâto say whatâs on your mind without apology, to stop being afraid, and to live life on your terms.
You yearn to be a Loud Woman.
What is a Loud Woman? You may think it has to do with increased volumeâand it couldâbut not always. Loudness is a state of mind. Itâs when a woman breaks the shackles that have kept her Quiet.
How have we been kept Quiet? Well, thereâs the literal translation of making less noise. In addition, societal conditioning has quieted us by teaching us to not trust ourselves, to always have good manners, and what behaviors we should tolerate from men.
âSheâs as quiet as a mouseâ is an expression we hear all the time. Quiet girls are good girls, right? Quiet girls do not bother anyone. They do not upset anyone. They do whatâs expected of them without complain and with a smile.
Inside this quiet mouse of a girl, though, is a Loud Woman ready to break free.
Is this you? If so, you have come to the right place. I have taken what I have learned on my Loud Woman Journey and extracted lessons to help you on yours. You will break through your fear mindset and do things scared. You will learn to set up boundaries so people no longer take advantage of you. You will improve your self-worth so you can (finally) get the things you deserve. You will learn to trust yourself, because you are the expert at whatâs best for you.
And I will illuminate this path so you can join other women who are on the same journey, and we can love and support each other as the Loud Women we are.
This journey will not be easy, but I am here with my torch to light the way. Together, we will traverse out of our Quiet Caves into a new world, where women are Louder, happier, and more fulfilled; where the ripple effect of Loud Women will bring balance to our world; and where things improve for all humans.
The guys have been running the world for a long time. In many ways, they have done an outstanding job. In other ways, not so much. War, greed, wealth inequality, environmental issuesâthese are all byproducts of masculine leadership. At the heart of it all is a scarcity mindset that tells us there is not enough for everyone.
We know itâs not true, though. God has given us plenty.
Thatâs why, right now, we need feminine leadership. To do that, we need every woman to become a Loud Woman.
Loud Woman does not mean Super Woman. We will not be perfect on this journey, and you may feel like quitting. Please donât. We are here to change the world, and that means we must keep moving.
So, if you lose your footing, read this book. If you get skittish, read this book. If you become unsure, read this book. If you feel like there is no point, read this book.
Loud Woman, come with me. Our world is going to shit, and we can stop this tail spin if we rise up and get Louder.
Itâs time to stop being a Quiet Mouse and transform into a Loud Woman.
Are you ready?
"Loudness is a state of mind."
I was initially drawn to this book because of the title. I am told almost daily that I am too loud. After reading this book, I realize that what these people are trying to tell me is that I'm not acting the way they think a woman should. What Jill Celeste has told me is that I am doing just fine exactly the way I am.
Drawing from personal examples, celebrity stories, and published research, Celeste establishes the ways in which women can overcome the constraints and boxes that women are put in. She identifies the universality of the woman experience and teaches women that they can be so much more.
First of all, I appreciated that she identifies her biases right away. These are certainly apparent in her writing, but the acknowledgement of those biases allow for the reader to put aside what does not fit their own life and take what they can from Celeste's experiences. Her writing is vulnerable at times, and she also does a great job at taking readers through explanations.
The book is set in a very structured way which for me felt repetitive. Instead of the short chapters all relating to the same topic, it would have been easier to read one chapter. I just kept getting bombarded with the same messaging, and I did not like that. I normally take notes on the chapters when I review books, but I had to stop because it was becoming too much of the same summary.
However, that type of structure would be great for a lot of readers. This is written in tidbits which is easily digestible. The repetition also creates almost like a mantra for each section which would be effective for people looking for the self-help aspect of the novel. The 2nd person narration makes this book engaging from the outset.
Ultimately, the use of metaphors, direct tactics and ideas, and parallels with both Celeste's life and pop culture makes for a read that is easily read and easily followed. Each section is chalk-full of helpful tips for mindset shifting. This book stands as a well-needed reminder that we, as women, can be more than what society tells us.