Yesterday Radio 4’s Women’s Hour announced their top 10 most influential women of 2015. There were a few familiar faces (Anna Wintour and Angelina Jolie snore) and a few new ones (Sia and Caitlyn Jenner round of applause), but the one thing that really stood out was the ages of the women who made it onto the list. No one was younger than 39, or older than 65.
So, either we ladies have a limited window of opportunity to be ‘influential’ or our generation is just totally not living up to the ones that went before us. Eek.
We had a look through the ladies that made it in to the top 10 (as judged by by journalist Emma Barnett, human rights lawyer Helena Kennedy QC, Radio 1 presenter Gemma Cairney, Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine and Whistles chief executive Jane Shepherds) and hats off to them, they’re all doing amazing work and are dominating their fields.
But what were they doing in their twenties, before they were ‘influential’? And if we start working really, really, really, really hard now, is there a chance we could be as successful and influential as they are one day?
(Disclaimer: reading this could either make you feel like shit, or fill you with ambition, depending on how you’re wired.)
Nicola Sturgeon
The kick-ass Scottish politician has been moulding her profile as a hard grafter since before she left school. She joined the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 1986 and first stood for election in 1992 – the youngest parliamentary candidate in Scotland at the tender age of 22. So if politics and maybe even world domination is on your to-do list, time to get cracking.
Anna Wintour
In her mid-twenties the now Vogue editor-in-chief got her first job as an editorial assistant at Harper’s Bazaar and became fashion editor not long after. Straight from the off, she told her colleagues she wanted to edit Vogue one day. Talk about ambition. No, literally – talk about it. It worked for AW.
Angelina Jolie
Angelina is one of those rare specimens of human beings that only Hollywood can breed. By the time she was in her mid-twenties she’d already been married and divorced, and by 26 had adopted her first child. In career terms, her first big break came in Girl, Interrupted in 1999 – when she was just 24. For which she won her third Golden Globe Award, her second Screen Actors Guild Award, and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. FACT: You gotta start early if you want to make it to the top in Hollywood. (Not too early though, LiLo’s living proof of that...)
Katherine Viner
First Guardian article published at 16. Head girl. Job at Cosmopolitan. Appointed editor of the Guardian Weekend supplement in 1998 – aged 28. *The Guardian’*s recently appointed editor has basically been on a path to success since before she could walk. But she’s also evidence that hard work and commitment can get you far, so don’t give up just yet.
Camilla Cavendish
The No 10 policy advisor and ex-Oxford croney of Dave C’s has been a bit more of a slow burner, building a careeer in journalism before being appointed to Downing Street. Slow and steady wins the race....
Sia
In 2000, Sia signed to Sony Music’s sub-label Dance Pool and released her second studio album, Healing Is Difficult, the following year. And had already sung with Zero 7 at this point. So in our eyes, she was already doing preeetttyyy well by the time she hit her mid-twenties. But it’s only in the last few years that she actually made a ‘celebrity’ name for herself (and a reluctant one at that), thanks to collaborations with the likes of David Guetta.
Caitlyn Jenner
A new (and ACE) entry to the list, Jenner shot to stardom when she (then a he) won a gold medal aged 26 at the Summer Olympics in Montreal. And in doing so, earnt the the unofficial title of ‘world’s greatest athlete’. A shit load of reality TV shows later, she’s now the most famous transgender person in the world. Proving that quite literally anything can happen in 40 years.
Karen Blackett
The CEO of MediaCom has a great story of hard work and success in the face of huge challenges (aka being a black woman in an industry entirely dominated by white males) and now basically influences everything you buy. You know what they say cringe comment alert every journey starts with a single step, so start climbing the ladder now…. OK, two cringe comments shoved together, but it works, OK.
Zanny Minton Beddoes
YIKES. This one would make even the brightest young Oxbridge spark quibble with intimidation. After graduation, Zanny was recruited straight away as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland. She then spent two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and joined The Economist in 1994 (aged 24) as a correspondent. She became the first editor-in-chief of the magazine this year. Fancy a chance of following in her footsteps? Might have to set the clock backs for that one...
Sara Khan
Is the founder of Inspire, an NGO working to counter extremism and gender inequality. She comes in at a very worthy no 10, thanks in part to her relentless commitment to campaigning for women’s rights. In her mid-twenties she was already a force to be reckoned with.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.