Take Your Daughters to Work Day

16 years ago I remember getting research on an interview that I was going to be doing later in the week on Good Morning America. It was about a new program called, “take your daughters to work day” where people all across America were being asked to bring their daughters to work so that they could shadow their parents throughout their work day. This experience would allow young women to not only have a better appreciation for their parents hard work but would be an opportunity for inspiration and exposure to the workplace and. The thought was that boys had always been raised to believe that they could be successful business leaders in life, and this was a step towards letting young women know that they too could achieve greatness in life and there were many opportunities out there for them in life as well.

When the day arrived I awakened my daughters at 4 AM in the morning and brought them into the Good Morning America studios. They were mostly interested in the hot chocolate and donuts as opposed to the senators we had on that morning, however my 12 year old daughter Jamie was excited to meet her favorite author Mary Higgins Clark who was scheduled for an interview that morning. Jamie stood before me in the make-up room suggesting questions for me to ask about Clark’s latest novel. When one of the producers walked by and overheard her, they decided to mic her up and put her in the interview with me! It made for good TV, but more importantly it made a life-long impact on her. To this day she has the confidence to speak in front of a crowd or to the camera, she’s inquisitive and loves journalism. I was raised by parents who constantly told me that I could be anything I wanted to be and I truly believe that encouragement gave me the confidence to be where I am today. And for young girls across America, Take your Daughters to Work Day can provide opportunities for that same kind of encouragement just like Jamie found that day. So take your daughters to work!