Meet Jennifer Hunter.

Jennifer is the Co-founder of Gensyn Design, which she recently started after transitioning from a long career at Purdue University Fort Wayne. She has been focused on improving organizational outcomes, cultures, and leadership for over two decades. As a practitioner and facilitator of design thinking and Strategic Doing™, Jennifer thrives on creating intentional and collaborative experiences for diverse groups of people to solve their biggest challenges.

YWCA Asks:   What does an “empowering woman” mean to you?

Jennifer: An empowered woman is someone who feels in control of her life, believes in her capacity to influence her thoughts and behaviors, and has faith in her ability to handle a wide range of situations.  This sense of personal agency recognizes that while life can be crazy at times, or can deal unexpected or hurtful situations, she still can decide what to think or how to respond to something.   An empowered woman knows herself – what she believes and what she needs – and knows that by taking care of herself first, she can then do more to help others.  Being empowered means honoring yourself by living and behaving authentically.

YWCA Asks:   In what ways do you empower other women?

Jennifer: I believe I empower other women when I encourage and support their goals, help them believe in possibilities they can’t see yet, and help them recognize their own unique gifts. I also try to empower other women by staying open, inclusive, and being mindful of those different than me. Understanding, accepting, and valuing others, regardless of their differences, empowers women to be all they can be, which is good for everyone.

YWCA Asks:  Can you share some tidbit of information or experience that would be helpful to other women?

Jennifer: Women are natural doers, helpers, and nurturers, but unfortunately, we don’t always focus those tendencies on ourselves. From my experience, when we stop taking care of ourselves, we aren’t able to take care of others very well either.  I encourage women to incorporate self-care into their daily lives, even if it’s just for five minutes. Stop. Breathe. Be grateful.