Women @ Convoy – Q1 Book Club Event

The Women@Convoy Employee Resource Group (ERG) at Convoy offers professional and personal development programming for employees who identify as women. We foster cross-team networking and collaboration, so that women can build both personal and professional relationships that expand their opportunities. We also bring in entrepreneurial women from various industries as guests who can help us enhance our worldviews by providing different perspectives and help us gain an understanding of how entrepreneurs build incredible products and services that people love.

In 2021, we’ve put together an ambitious roadmap that structures our programming into four quarterly focus areas. In Q1, our theme has been “Setting Yourself Up For Success” by building good habits and routines. In Q2, we will focus on “Building Your Personal Brand”. These quarterly focus areas help structure the topics we discuss in our small groups, the external speakers we bring in, and the books we read for our book club.

For Q1, we chose to kick the year off with a joyful start, by reading The Book of Joy, by Douglas Carlton Abrams. After a tumultuous start to the year, the group wanted to read something uplifting that would feed the soul as we headed into yet another year of life and work under quarantine. The book’s explanation of joy as something that comes beyond material possessions, and from a deeper well of emotional and mental calm, was a great reminder of the strength we carry within ourselves. It was also an invitation to tap into the well of gratitude for what we have that so many others have lost–our jobs, our health, and each other. 

Our book club discussion was open to all ERG members, and was attended by roughly 20 (very active and engaged) members. We held the discussion over Zoom, and made very active use of the “reactions” button that allows members to “thumbs up” or “heart” to show support for another member’s response, or “raise hand” when someone wants to contribute without speaking over others. The discussion was an active one, and one of the book club participants even remarked that she “wished [she] had read this book earlier in the pandemic”, to elevate those feelings of calm and joy in the midst of such a volatile 2020. The book’s distinction between ephemeral happiness and that deeper sense of joy also forced us to reexamine what our own priorities and values are. Speaking personally, it was a joy to reflect on the mission of sustainability that Convoy has embarked on, and the progress we’ve made against it.

This book club discussion was, fittingly, sponsored by Third Culture Coffee. It’s fitting that with our discussion of health and happiness, Third Culture is a local business with a mission to create incredible drinks, while supporting their goals of diversity and sustainability.

As we think about our mental and physical wellness for this year and how we can more actively act on our values, we encourage our members to think about supporting local businesses that value sustainability.
If you or someone you know is interested in speaking to the Women@Convoy ERG on our upcoming themes (Q2: Building your personal brand; Q3: Mapping your career journey; Q4: Building personal wealth), please email us at womxn@convoy.com.