Everyone knows about Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly
solo across the Atlantic Ocean. There’s more to her than aviation pioneering. As
well as braving mysterious skies, she also confronted early twentieth-century
expectations of what a woman ought to be. In celebration of Women’s History
Month, here are some life lessons from the extraordinary Amelia Earhart.
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| Photo from The Red List |
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| Photo from the Phoenix Project |
Be yourself. Like many women, Amelia didn't fit into one simple category. She elbowed her way into the male-dominated aviation
world, cutting her hair short and donning a leather jacket. But she also
created a clothing line. Yes, a clothing line! In 1934, her clothes debuted in
Chicago and New York and later spread throughout the United States. She was
photographed in Vogue and was even
appointed the Aviation Editor at Cosmopolitan,
where she wrote articles encouraging women to learn to fly.
Set an example for other women. Amelia’s mom, Amy Earhart, was the first
woman to climb Pike’s Peak. She supported her daughter and ingrained in her a
lifetime of believing in oneself. Amelia grew into an image many women came to
admire, including Eleanor Roosevelt, the First Lady at the time. In the spring
of 1933, Amelia attended a black tie event at the White House. After dinner on
a whim, the two women hopped on a plane in their long dresses, and Amelia flew
them from Washington D.C. to Baltimore. Eleanor also obtained a students’
permit to fly.
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| Amelia and her mother. Photo from the Globe and Mail |
Just do it! Like the impromptu White House flight,
Amelia took a lot of risks. She founded the first organization for women
aviators, helped promote commercial airlines, wrote a couple books, and much
more. Though it seems like she accomplished more than most of us can, this
simply isn't true. She actively pursued her goals and ideas, without a fear of
failure.
There is no straight path. It seems like behind
every successful person, there’s a story of how they just “knew” they would be
_____. This wasn't the case for Amelia. When she saw an airplane for the first
time at the Iowa State Fair in the early 1900s, she wasn't impressed. It took
her more than a decade after that to find her calling. She wore many hats
before then, including being a tutor, telephone operator, and social worker
before trying out her favorite: the bomber hat.
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| Amelia and George. Photo from the Wall Street Journal |
Don’t compromise. Amelia wasn't very mesmerized by
marriage either at first. It took George Putnam six proposals to tie the knot
with Amelia. She wrote about her hesitancy in a letter to George. She wished
for a certain level of independence and equality; particularly, she did not
want to give up on her work, which in 1931, was fairly uncommon. George
accepted her requests, which also included keeping her maiden name, an act
that is rare even today.
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