What is this corner of the internet about? It’s about taking intentional ownership of every aspect of our lives and then shaping it to our purpose. It is about connecting, learning from each other and ultimately, self-definition. It’s about picking up tips and tools from each other and building on them rather that reinventing the same clunky wooden wheel generation after generation.

It is about letting go of the narrative of the single story of your identity, of womanhood, of your career , of your parenting and of how much control you actual have. It’s about viewing our own lives as a complex, yet simple lump of clay made up of all of the stories that are woven into each one of us. It’s about placing them on the wheel to mould with intention and purpose into what we want to see in the mirror. It’s about letting go of surviving and choosing to thrive. It is our little corner to truly engage with ourselves in all the messy glory. A place to “throw clay” onto the wheel of life.

Whether what we achieve is art or pedestrian or unique or muck to the onlooker will matter little because it will be ours. Imagined by our own minds and made by our own hands. It will be our stories; owned and written by us. Let our children come next and know that they can be more than one story because they saw us living our stories with their triumphs and stumbles unapologetically. Let them see this little modern village and realise that they too can define themselves.

My story, just like yours, is full of other stories. Stories of a woman, a mother, a lover, a writer, a corporate lawyer, an African, a corporate governance expert, an involved parent, a learner, a home cook, a technological laggard,  a book lover, a speaker, a clumsy girl, a wannabe fitness enthusiast, a girl whose laugh sounds like a snort, an introverted extrovert, a friend, a daughter, a sister, an outlier yet an adopter of selective cliches, a voice and a story teller… a woman just trying her best for better and for worse just like you.

Mteto Nyati, author of “Betting on a Darkie. Lifting the Corporate Game,” at one of his book signings, said you change a narrative by creating a portfolio of evidence. I understood that to mean that we can change the single story of what is to be found at the intesection of career, motherhood and identity one story at a time. So mine, is also the story of a woman who saw, lived and politely said “no, thank you” to the single story and, in the biggest cliche (and even irony of all), was inspired by her children to make a small move to change the story for others too by creating this platform to empower and be empowered.

“I would like to end with this thought: That when we reject the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any place [person or thing], we regain a kind of paradise.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

So, hi there. My name is Chio. Welcome to Throwing Clay. To help you get around, you will find the follow and search buttons at the bottom of the main page. For ease of reference, all posts may be found under the Magazine page but they can also be viewed by category and each category has its own page e.g. women@work. If you are looking for a little more hands-on guidance than the articles, then Your Village is here for you offering a Career Lounge, Events, Lifestyle Concierge, Speaking Services and a Entrepreneur Toolkit. Let’s have tea and a chat.

In the meantime, Mi Casa, Su Casa. I can’t wait to share our many stories in our own version of the modern village.