How "The Womanologist" Dion Johnson's Facial Disfigurement Inspired Her to Empower Women to 'Unmask", Live Their Best Lives, and Become Leaders

“I realized if I was going to show up for real, I needed to know who I am - FOR REAL. Today’s woman dreamer, Dion Johnson, is a multi-award-winning Women's champion, with a mission to “re-power women” to drive change and embrace who they are. Born with a facial disfigurement, Dion learned at an early age that we have to unmask and show up FOR REAL. Having worked with hundreds of rising women leaders, Dion emphasizes that this is the time to bring influential women to the forefront. She writes, “Womanity is innately powerful, she is gifted, strong, nurturing, intuitive, caring, compassionate fierce and influential. I believe marketplace leadership needs authentic womanity now, like never before, if we are ever going to win the war against some of our most persistent global marketplace predicaments such as inequality, injustice, all forms of “ISMS”, ill-health and indifference.” An inspiring coach and strategic ally, Dion shares her “5 Step Checklist for Change”. for all women. Enjoy her powerful story!

1) Tell us your story. You are known as "The Womanologist" What does the womanologist mean to you and what inspired you to start this platform? 

I was born with a PRONOUNCED facial disfigurement.

When I was four I was gifted an artificial eye and dark glasses to help me hide my facial flaws and blend in to look more  ‘normal’ I call that the beginning of my life behind the mask, and quite unconsciously, through that process, I was learning a powerful lesson. that if something’s not “right” or “normal” about you , then you should hide that thing, put it away so no one sees it.

Then 40 years later in 2009, through a random series of events, life woke me up to the truth that I was hiding and petrified of being seen for real -  I found myself being challenged by God to let people see the real me and I was petrified.

Back then, letting people see the real me, was about no longer wearing an artificial eye and dark glasses, but as I prepared to show up maskless, I learned that my face wasn’t the only thing I was masking, I learned that I was hiding myself on a whole host of levels… trying to be this kind of person for him and that kind of woman for them… trying to fit in with what was expected of me and totally losing connection with the real me in the process

I realised if I was going to show up for real, I needed to know who I am - FOR REAL. I’ve been on an incredible journey of self discovery and  what I have learned about women, masking and unmasking is profound and absolutely applicable to the women I work with, women who want to show up powerfully and for real in the boardroom and c-suite.

One of the things I learned about myself on this journey is that I was born to support women… My professional background is midwifery and I’ve been alongside literally thousands of women in pregnancy, childbirth and transition to motherhood - which I see as the ultimate leadership role. It’s here that I discovered and developed a profound belief in WOMANITY and the undeniable innate power of women - I believe this power will change our world and my job is all about getting “her” to show up for real in her professional position and use that power to speak up, take an influential stand and lead the important meaningful change the world needs so urgently right now.

2) You empower women who are looking to change their lives and become leaders. Give us your "checklist for change" - what are 5 things women need to do/think about in their leadership journey? 

Womanity is innately powerful, she is gifted, strong, nurturing, intuitive, caring, compassionate fierce and influential - I believe marketplace leadership needs authentic womanity now, like never before, if we are ever going to win the war against some of our most persistent global marketplace predicaments such as inequality, injustice, all the ISMS, ill-health and indifference. 

I also believe if we are going to answer the call to show up this way, we’ve got work to do. WE MUST PREPARE! The pressure is real for women in marketplace leadership, and the reality is we, collectively are struggling under that pressure, we are caught up in power struggles, we are experiencing professional pushbacks, we are subject to genderisms and all the isms, our inner game is compromised by imposter thoughts, insecurities, excessive self consciousness. Women are still the primary carers and cleaners in the home and we are balancing family and professional lives in a way that our male counterparts simply do not have to - If we are going to show up more authentically, speak up more powerfully and shake thing the hell up more confidently and influentially, we simply must be intentional about getting ourselves ready for this! Here are the three areas I help my clients work on

HEAL - Women collectively and individually have been through a lot historically. I seen first hand in my work behind-the-mask and woman-to-woman how that historical hurt and unaddressed issues from the past can affect the way we show up in leadership today in profound ways - we must heal.

HEAD - I’ve sat with hundreds of leaders, one thing is for sure, it’s noisy in our heads… we are entertaining thoughts about how “they” see us. We are all up in our heads about how we are coming across, our right to be in the room, game planning to manage the power struggle - trouble is this type of defensive thinking is a distraction and obstructive to the flow of our genuine authentic power  - we must handle our heads and cultivate what I call HQT - Higher Quality Thinking about WHO we are and WHAT we are positioned in leadership to do

HOOK- We must develop our ability to grab and keep hold of the attention of the people want to influence with our ideas - this means developing our insights and ideas sound a specific cause or mission and learning to deliver them in compelling and captivating ways to inspire buy-in from the people we need onboard to bring about the change we want to see. - we must develop our influential hook

HEAL | HEAD | HOOK - Make these your focus, develop your networks to ensure you are connected with people who can support your intention around these key development areas. Invest in a coach, seek out mentors, read books, join networks - It really is time for you to show up in all your authentic, powerful, influential glory but we can’t do it alone! 

3)You have worked with empowered women around the globe in your business and have been a speaker at multiple events. What were some of the most exciting/rewarding moments of your life? And your key life lesson learned along the way? 

Writing my book was one of the hardest things I have done, it took everything to submit my manuscript to Hay House, my publishers, I liken the process to childbirth! So having the book do so well and receiving messages from the people the book is connecting me with is hands down my best accomplishment to date - I love the awards I’ve won over the years, I’ve won several, but NOTHING compares to making an actual difference in the lives and leadership of real women

The messages are coming in almost daily from women around the world. Just last night I received a message from a client I am working with as a direct result of her reading my book. She said 

“I couldn’t go to sleep without sharing with you how I am still feeling after our session - Dion, I am at peace like I haven’t known for years - There’s a fire in my belly and I feel Alive! I haven’t felt like this for years and years! Something was missing - I was so out of alignment, I was feeling up and down and I was so unclear - You’ve blown me away! I didn’t know who I was, I am all these things and I didn’t know it! I haven’t been showing up… you’ve helped me want to show up for real - I’m scared s#!tless but more excited than I’ve been in a long long time!”

I’ve learned that a woman exceptionally and skillfully supported can and usually will do amazing things!

4) As the womanologist, how do you define women empowerment? And who is an empowered woman in your life that you admire? 

I don’t really talk about women’s empowerment - I stand for the re-powerment of women - I say this because I know that women don’t need to be given power - we are already powerful we are power-filled - what we need is support to reconnect with our truly innate powers and master its use in our personal and professional relationships - this is my definition of a powerful influential woman!

I surround myself with great women leaders - to name one is difficult but a woman I greatly admire right now is Dambisa Moya - a global economist who is challenging boards and corporations around the world to think differently about the way they impact the economy - her ideas are unconventional, challenging and unapologetic but she presents them with such credibility and elegance influence - I love her work! And she’s not alone - in every industry there are some brilliant women doing the real work to show up in their power to lead the change they want to see in their world! Are you one of them, Influential Woman?

Thank you Dion for sharing your empowering story with us! We are so excited to have you in our global women’s network!

BIO: Dion Johnson, also known as the Womanologist, is an ex-midwife and Director in public services, where she pioneered, co-ordinated and led special services serving highly vulnerable and marginalised client groups. Dion is a multi-award-winning Women's champion with the re-powerment of women at the heart of her work. She works behind the global leadership scenes as Master Coach, Strategic Ally and trusted advisor to some of the most influential women across sectors and industries. She is challenging and changing the inner narrative about what it means to be a credible influencer in today’s fast changing work space. Her clients are Chief executives, Directors and Heads across sectors because when these women truly thrive (not just act like they are thriving) so do boards, organisations, industries and ultimately our world. Dion was born with a pronounced facial disfigurement Her story of ‘unmasking’ is a powerful metaphor that is now captivating and inspiring leaders across the globe to “Show Up, Speak Up and Shake Things the hell Up”, authentically, within their sphere of influence too. She’s passionate about and uniquely skilled to help women rise above professional challenges and #BeMoreInfluential in their roles and her new book Influential Woman: A fresh approach to tackling inequality and leading change at work receives positive reviews from readers around the globe.