Natasha Zena natashazena_

Here’s A Toast To The Year That Woke Everyone The Hell Up

January 28, 2017

2 Min Read

Last year wasn't all bad. Things got so real in 2016 that a lot of people woke the hell up to find there was a big world out there with serious problems.

Here’s A Toast To The Year That Woke Everyone The Hell Up - Lioness Magazine — Leonardo DiCaprio finally cinched the Oscar in 2016.

I know at least one person who thought 2016 was amazing: Leonardo DiCaprio (finally they gave him his Academy Award!). My social media feeds were bombarded with memes and sarcastic posts about how extraordinarily awful the year 2016 had been, primarily due to the deaths of icons like Prince, Carrie Fisher and David Bowie to name a few. Others would even speculate that we experienced the death of the ideals of this country via a presidential election that seemed to bring out the worst in some people.

What 2016 did do was lift the veil for all to see the current state of America for all citizens. There was a plethora of topics pushed into the national spotlight that no longer allowed some of us to avert our eyes. From women’s rights to the Black Lives Matter movement to the responsibility of the press to LGBTQ rights, all the way to highest office in the land, it felt like all Americans were finally talking about the same things at the same time – no matter on which side their opinions lay.

Many times we have the luxury of not needing to care or get involved in an issue that personally doesn’t touch us. If 2016 did anything, it allowed us to stop sweeping certain issues under the rug and for that I am grateful, because, how can you fix something if you haven’t even acknowledged that there’s a problem in the first place?

So here’s a proper Leonardo toast to the year that forced many to remove their blinders. Now that we’re all awake, maybe we can finally have a real conversation. And 2017 looks like a fine time to do just that.

Until the next time,

Unleash The Lioness Within,

Natasha ♥

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Natasha Zena

Around age eight Natasha Zena was told it was a woman’s job to take care of the home and since then she has built a career out of telling women they can do whatever the hell they want to do. She is the co-founder of Lioness, the go-to news source for everything female entrepreneur. Natasha was recognized as an emerging leader in digital media by The Poynter Institute and the National Association of Black Journalists. She has mentored women entrepreneurs and moderated panels at a number of national accelerators, Startup Weekends and conferences such as The Lean Startup Conference, the Massachusetts Conference for Women, Women Empower Expo and Smart Cities Connect. Natasha is also the author of the popular whitepaper, "How To Close The Gender Gap In Startup Land By 2021." In her spare time, she writes short fiction and hangs out with her son, Shaun.