PICTURES: A special International Women's Day lunch in Louth

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International Women’s Day was being celebrated early by Network Ireland Louth who, together with Local Enterprise Office Louth, had a joint event during Local Enterprise Week.  

The event on Thursday 6th March, in the Fairways Hotel Dundalk, was entitled ‘The Recovery Position’ and Julie Burke aka JulesRulesIrl kept the audience of local businesswomen enthralled with her story and her advice.

Julie calls herself ‘Jack of all trades, master of some’. She was born in Derry, grew up in Limerick, moved to Galway, then to London for 3 years, and back to Galway.

She considers herself a Galway woman. Her working life started at 12 when she worked in the local corner shop so that she could earn chocolate, as payment. She moved on to Tesco, working in various roles and never said no to anything. She was always up for the challenge thinking she could do everything.

It wasn’t until her late 20s, when she slipped getting out of the shower, split the back of her head open but managed to call the emergency services, get down the stairs, unlock the door to let them in, and then put herself into the Recovery Position, that she finally realised she was trying to do too much.

She was trying to be the ‘perfect’ everything and not asking for help.

“We tend to not ask for help because we feel there is a stigma around asking for help”, she said. However, she advised that asking for the right help from the right people is the important thing as you can’t do it all by yourself. There are times when we have to recognise our personal limits and get the support.

“We live on an island, but we are not an island” Julie advised.

Listen to your body and find ways to quieten your mind. Help yourself first but do reach out to others and meet for the coffee and the cake – make the time. Julie spoke about the importance of networking to get the necessary support and to have people that you can say “I need your advice” to. She praised Network Ireland and the manner in which everyone supports each other in the various branches throughout the country.

Sarah Mallon, of LEO Louth, spoke of her organisation’s commitment to supporting Network Ireland Louth and how pleased they were to do the joint event with the network. Nicola Connolly-Byrne, President of Network Ireland Louth, wrapped up the night, thanking Julie for her words of wisdom, and reminding the ladies present that the next event will take place on Tuesday April 29 and is entitled ‘You do You’.

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Network Ireland is a progressive, dynamic organisation supporting the professional and personal development of women. With over 1,200 members and a strong nationwide presence, the group holds regular events, workshops, and networking opportunities that promote empowerment and leadership for women in business.

To join Network Ireland, go to: www.networkireland.ie and ‘become a member.’