Moving Women from Paralysis to Power

Local Leader Lab Mid-Program Impact Update, November 2025

We’re watching something powerful take shape. Women who could be leading, women with ideas, energy, and commitment, are stepping up. And they’re all asking the same question: What can I do that matters?

Many feel overwhelmed and unsure where to begin. But they’re still raising their hands. They’re willing to move forward even without perfect clarity.

This is the invisible part of the leadership pipeline. And we’re filling it.

The Local Leader Lab is a 12-week, part-time virtual program built for this exact moment. It meets women where they are and moves them into action in their own communities. The curriculum combines weekly live sessions with self-paced, real-world assignments rooted in the issues they’re tackling where they live. Each woman is launching a micro project that builds civic strength in her community while gaining the clarity and confidence that fuel future leadership.

We’re not waiting for perfect conditions or a five-year timeline. We’re helping women take meaningful action now. Because leadership isn’t about having all the answers. It starts with being willing to begin.

We’re Building This in Real Time. And It’s Working

Here’s what makes the Lab different: we’re not delivering a pre-packaged curriculum. We’re building it with the women in the program, responding to their needs as they emerge, adjusting as we go. They’re in the messy middle of figuring out how to lead in chaos. So are we. And that’s exactly what it takes.

Just past the halfway mark, the mid-way point survey results speak for themselves:

100% of the participants are already taking action. Twenty women have launched concrete civic work toward their micro projects. Eleven more have actions planned and underway. The rest are fine-tuning their projects. Not one woman is waiting for permission or perfect conditions. They are stepping up now.

100% would recommend the Lab to another woman. Every single participant says this program is making a real difference in their leadership.

The quotes tell the story better than we can:

“There is no insignificant place to start.”

“I used to feel like I did not know where to start. Now I feel like I am really doing this. This program gave me the confidence to take the first step.”

“This is the first time in a long time I have felt clarity about what I can do.”

What’s Shifting: From Overwhelm to Possibility

Participants describe a fundamental transformation in how they see themselves and their power:

• More confident. They’re trusting their instincts and taking risks.
• More clear. They know what they can do and why it matters.
• More grounded. They’ve reconnected to their values and found their voice.

One woman wrote:

“It has reshaped what I define as leadership. Leadership is identifying an issue and being willing to take action on it.”

Another shared:

“This program helped me break big issues down into small, digestible pieces and build power from small wins. That is the energy we need to keep moving toward the big goal.”

This isn’t abstract skill-building. It’s women who felt powerless six weeks ago now launching projects that will strengthen civic participation, engage neighbors, address local issues, and build their visibility for future runs.

The Secret Ingredient: Community

In every reflection, participants said the same thing. They feel less alone. In a fractured political climate where so many women are isolated in their frustration and fear, the cohort has become something powerful:

“The women in my cohort are stellar. They are inspiring, full of ideas, and leading with both an open heart and a firm spine. They feel ready to conquer the world.”

“If not this group of women who showed up on purpose, then who?”

“Drops wear down the stone through persistence. This group reminds me to keep going.”

The Lab is described as energizing, safe, honest, and supportive. Women who entered feeling overwhelmed are now feeling seen. And that connection is transformative.

Why This Matters Now

In a moment of unprecedented disruption, most leadership programs still operate like the world is stable. They focus on women who are ready to run tomorrow. Or they offer inspiration without structure.

The Lab does something different and urgent: we meet women in the chaos (stuck, scared, unsure) and give them permission to start before they’re ready. To do what they can, even when they can’t do everything. To lead in the mess.

The curriculum is nimble. The support is human. The expectations are doable. And the impact is immediate.

One participant captured it perfectly:

“When everything feels overwhelming, the Lab gives you guidance to get back on track so you can take that first real step into public leadership.”

Another wrote:

“Everything has been organized, thorough, flexible, and human. This is exactly the structure I needed to move from ideas to action.”

The Beginning of Something

We are building the leadership pipeline from a place that’s usually invisible and underutilized. We’re reaching women at the exact moment when they’re most likely to give up, and we’re showing them they don’t have to wait for perfect timing or clearer skies to make a difference.

As one participant said:

“Thank you for including me. This feels like the beginning of something big.”

We couldn’t agree more.