Michelle Emson
Michelle Emson is an entrepreneur, LGBTI human rights activist, keynote speaker, workshop facilitator, and documentary filmmaker. An openly-out transgender woman, Michelle is currently living and working in Muskoka, Ontario, Canada. Whilst Michelle transitioned late in life (at aged 50) she firmly believes that one is never too old, nor too young, to step into their true authentic selves and live the life they deserve, without being bound by outdated social constructs of gender, identity, and sexuality.
Michelle has been selected as a Finalist for the prestigious 2017 Mompreneurs® Momentum Award. Mompreneurs® is a 20,000 strong nationwide, Canadian, organization of female entrepreneurs.
Episode Summary:
Michelle shares her story of gender dysphoria and what it was like experiencing this as a child growing up in the 60’s, getting married and showing up in the world as a small part of who she really was. She talks about trying to save her marriage, family life and career while figuring out what she needed to do, and the feeling she got when she finally embraced the next step of her journey. Michelle also discusses the process of her transition and gives and inside look at her thought process throughout. She shares her passion about the Human Rights aspect of what she does and discusses categorization and the opportunities and challenges that come along with it..
Quotes:
“I applied all of society’s self judgments, nobody else did that for me”
“I chose to show up in the way I was expected to show up”
“The more you have to lose, the harder it is”
“I’ve stepped into my true self, my true power, and that’s liberating beyond belief”
“To be able to reveal your uniqueness and your own inner beauty… that’s better than any drug I know out there”
“I’m just a woman who gave up dressing like a guy”
“Everyone’s experience is unique. You can’t judge one against the other”
“With any minority, of any kind, for any reason, acceptance can only come from visibility”
“When we come to accept our own uniqueness, then perhaps we can come to accept the uniqueness of others”
Get to know Michelle:
Here’s to not putting each other in boxes and to limitlessness in who we are and how we define ourselves. Fluidity, a key to happiness <3 Thank you for such a vulnerable and insightful interview and Story Michelle and Dana. And yeah, we like to categorize, whew. But here's to seeing that there's so much more in how we can see each other <3 Thank you! Hug hug hug!!!! Your story will help so many going through identity questions and transitioning. <3 <3