Taking credit where credit is due

“Who narrates the world?” asked Katie Orenstein, founder and CEO of The OpEd Project, a social venture that aims to increase the number of women thought leaders in key commentary forums such as opinion editorials.

During the workshop titled, "Spark Talk: Owning Expertise,” Orenstein focused on why some professionals do not give themselves credit for being knowledgeable in their field.

The lecture was part of the Taylor Center's NewDay Distinguished Speaker Series and co-sponsored by Newcomb College Institute. NewDay Distinguished Speakers Series presents prominent leaders from across the fields of social innovation, social entrepreneurship, and design thinking to share their own experiences, challenges, insights, thoughts, and recommendations to students and the community.

“The more underrepresented you are, the more likely you are to not share your most impressive credentials,” said Orenstein.

Overall, the talk focused on the importance of using numbers, personal experiences, evidence and specific examples when sharing ideas with others in order to get the most credibility.

As an example, Orenstein asked the audience how they would handle the belief that they’d found a cure to cancer. Several audience participants said they would share their idea with the world based on the potential benefits to cancer patients.

“To get your ideas into the world, one must shift their thinking to social responsibility,” said Orenstein.  The formula for how to make this happen is “maximum influence driven by maximum awareness of your value to others.”