“You can be fat, skinny, black, white, brown, Christian, Hindu, Muslim, atheist…. a motorcycle won’t judge you.” ~Anonymous
Update Request as a gift to all women motorcyclists
Right now, in our American society one of the big conversations is about diversity. I am so grateful that this discussion is happening. I am learning so much about systems, politics and behavior. Because I am learning new things, I can’t help but apply them to aspects of my own life. And they say that being able to do that means you understand a concept and if you can apply it to your own life, you can also notice and help apply it for others.
So, here is my observation, experience and ask.
If I say, “We went for a really nice motorcycle ride this morning.”
When you hear this, if I were a man, you would just ask me what kind of motorcycle I have. But, because I am a woman, you assume that I am a motorcycle rider, and you ask me these questions:
“What kind of motorcycle does your husband have?”
“How do you like riding behind your husband?”
“Do you have your own motorcycle?”
Let us shift our thinking into a whole new set of possibilities and come from that new space and place.
Let’s assume that man or woman, if I talk about motorcycle riding, that I have my own bike.
With 20%+ of motorcycle owners being women, it is time to shift our assumption as to women only being riders of motorcycles. I will admit that I am asking for this a little ahead of the curve, I would just really like to see this change in my lifetime, so I am pushing my agenda and goals onto you. I am looking for some early adaptors to this new way of thinking.
So let me make this easy to know what I am asking for.
When I say, “We went for a really nice motorcycle ride this morning.”
And you are thinking, “I wonder what kind of bikes THEY have”, say these:
“What kind of bikes do you two have?”
“What do you ride?”
That is a more inclusive statement and is very proactive.
Thank you in advance for taking a moment to think about this with me.
20%+ of motorcycle owners are women and that number is growing.
I still see that as a low number, but it has gone up 6% in just four years. Women riders are one of the fastest growing areas in motorcycle riding. I foresee this number continuing to increase. They say that the millennials are at 24% ownership by women. I share this little detail with you so you can be proactive and show your support for women motorcycle riders like me.
Is there a thing in your life that you wish people would start to be early adopters of? How might you help people know it might be time to change how we think about something?
Drop me an email or share it on my social media. I would love to learn more.
Thank you.
JoyGenea Schumer
Business Owner, International Neurodiversity Coach and Speaker