I’ve had strong women in my life as role models. Of course, the 1st person who comes to mind is my own mother. In my professional life, I like to credit 2 women who took a chance on me and let me flourish because they saw that I had skills that would benefit the team.

In the political arena, Emily’s List has been there to support pro-choice Democratic women; the Women’s Information Network (of which, I’m a proud Advisory Board member) will be celebrating 25 years of connecting women in DC to one another for professional and personal growth; and of course, there is Running Start, an organization that helps young women see the possibilities of themselves running for elected office (I’m proud to say that I’m also a mentor to their Running Start Fellows and that my current associate, Fiona Zhu, went through their high school program). These organizations along with many others have been instrumental in helping young women achieve their goals in public service. If you haven’t taken a look at their portfolio, you should take the time to see how an investment in these organizations is also an investment into our future.

As a woman of color, I’m always interested in supporting our female Democratic candidates, especially those who are of Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) heritage. One of the trailblazers for women and for my community is the late Congresswoman Patsy Mink. Here is a great essay from current US Senator Mazie Hirono of how Rep. Mink paved the way for all those after her. Much thanks to Politico, the Tory Burch Foundation and Google for making these Women Rule profiles possible.