It might well be the ‘Lion King’ which is enjoying a resurgence this year, but 2019 is all about the female of the species, some would say. What with the Lionesses’ recent rise to football fame, for want of a better example, and the launch of Emma Watson’s legal advice hotline, both of which were significant nods to the generation of strong, courageous and all-conquering females dominating the headlines this year. Some might say the ‘lioness’ tone, as we’ll call it, was actually set back in 2013 when Katy Perry’s overt display of ‘ROAR potential’ served to inspire the female masses to be their own champions, and become their own heros. Now, as a metaphor for resilience, power and presence, the lioness is becoming further and further ingrained into the fabric of what it means to be female, with positive ripple effects in the worlds of business, sport and beyond. News stories which are illustrative of this effect continue to roll out week on week, and it’s not always the women you would expect who are proving to be the greatest forces to be reckoned with. What’s spurned the movement, to some extent, is the growing recognition of the power of emotional intelligence - something women tend to have in abundance. Ironically, it is this ‘soft power’ that is having the strongest impact when and where it matters most... starting, in particular, with the wider female self-belief pool. It’s a self perpetuating cycle of increasing confidence and self assurance which nobody can deny, from any perspective, can only be a good thing.