Issue 34 | Bloom with Ruth Penfold

Hello beautiful human

Collaboration > competition

To the women reading this, y’all know that’s how we feel better.

Well I recently learned something mind blowing about how our bodies react to competition.

For women, competing increases stress hormones, while for men, it boosts testosterone and gets them ready to rumble.

But when women collaborate instead of compete, our bodies produce more oxytocin, which is legit our secret superpower.

Oxytocin helps reduce stress and fosters feelings of trust and bonding. Imagine the positive impact on our well being and productivity if we focused more on supporting each other rather than competing.

And in case y’all don’t believe me, there are studies on this, I asked AI to break it down for us:

1. Gender Differences in Stress Response: The Role of Oxytocin by Taylor et al. in the Psychological Review ??Summary: The study found that women tend to produce more cortisol, a stress hormone, in competitive situations, while men produce more testosterone. The researchers suggest that oxytocin plays a significant role in reducing stress for women when they engage in supportive social interactions.
2. Oxytocin and Social Bonds: The Role of Oxytocin in Female Friendships by Carter et al. in Behavioral Neuroscience ??Summary: This research highlights how oxytocin is released during positive social interactions, particularly among women, leading to reduced stress and increased feelings of trust and bonding.Alright stop, collaborate and glisten ?

Which is a big part of why we are Bloom-ing together in Bloom.

We collaborate, we don't compete.

If we are going to get to live into everything that we are, we need a safe space to do so. A place to try things out, get stuff wrong, to learn together and grow together.

We all (yes, all) have a delicious uniqueness, and it’s a beautiful, wonderful thing.

One of the only ways to explore that uniqueness, is by trying stuff.

This month we hosted our 3rd IRL meetup at Huckletree, where we had two of our Bloom sisters do exactly that. They took the helm and hosted wonderful sessions within our time together.

1. How to supercharge your career story and build influence without sacrificing your integrity with me
2. How to bring your casefile of excellence to life and overcome self doubt with Natasha Norman
3. How to build and powerfully step into the next version of yourself with Natalie Harmon-Tatton - yes, those are lego pieces and she DID lead us in an awesome serious play lego session - AMAZING!

Thank you to everyone who made it along for the session this time: Yael Harel Natasha Norman Rhiannon Bankston-Thomas Liv Bennett Leigh Scholefield Kathryn Anthony Natalie Harmon-Tatton Gemma Lockhart Kirsty Power Henrietta Griffiths

And to you, dear reader, if you think it might be your time to Bloom, you can find out more about it here.

Rooting for you always

Ruth x

As we begin Q4 gang, I want you to give yourself grace.

You can't do all of the things, and that's okay.

What's going to create the most impact for you this quarter...? Start there.