When I give my TED Talk

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When i give my TED  talk  or tell my Lean in story ….

I would step up to the  stage with Dbanj’s  Top of the world  playing  in the background…

After the music stops , i would lean  into the microphone …

And I would say these words…

I am from a long line of strong willed women ,

My maternal grandmother was a devout Catholic who spent most of her life looking forward to meet the Pope .

She knew what she wanted ,  she worked hard and  saved up  and in the 1950 ‘s travelled from Hohoe in the Volta Region of Ghana to the  Vatican to meet him! . For as long as i remember that picture hang up on her wall

She was the most entrepreneurial women i knew,she founded and managed at least 10 businesses before she died.

My Paternal Grandmother would sneak off to watch football games by herself ( understand in her time this was unacceptable)

My Mum after my Dad came home , having quit his job with no savings and a child to take care of   .. Only asked one question : what can i do to make sure we are successful ?

With her help he built a successful construction business which paid for our home and my education abroad.

Then i would tell the rest of my story …