Senior Editor Julie Hullett kicks off Cultivate’24 at the Columbus Convention Center | Julie Hullett
Another year, another Cultivate. The premier horticulture event of the year is always jam-packed with education sessions, booth visits, and networking opportunities. When I come home, I think about what highlights I saw at the show. It’s hard to decide, because there is so much to see, but one of my favorites from this year was the Women in Horticulture luncheon.
Several months ago, AmericanHort announced Geneiva McNeale as the speaker for this year’s Women in Horticulture luncheon. I have attended the last two luncheons, but I was especially excited for this one.
Geneiva and I met at Cultivate two years ago. At the time, she was a training and development manager for Metrolina Greenhouses in Huntersville, NC. Geneiva later decided to start her own business, GLM Leadership Consulting. We have worked together on various articles over the years, and I knew she would be an excellent speaker.
The talk was titled “Positive Intelligence: Unlocking the Power of a Positive Mindset.” Geneiva spoke to a packed ballroom about saboteur thoughts, and how people may falsely believe that they are not qualified for the job they are doing. Some may feel that happiness and success hinge solely on achieving specific goals. Genieva offered techniques to battle a negative mindset and replace it with self-affirming thoughts.
Now, you may be thinking “This talk wasn’t about horticulture at all.” Did it cover the specifics of horticulture, such as plants or greenhouses? No, but the message can be applied to horticulture.
Statistics show that more women are entering the horticulture workforce, and more women are enrolling in university horticulture programs. This means that some women find themselves as the first female to be head grower at an operation, for example. In this situation, it may feel like they do not belong there, or the women may feel that they did not work hard enough to earn their spot.
Geneiva used personal examples to show how these negative thoughts can impact your success and your motivation. Her speech was uplifting for all the women in the room, especially young ones who are just starting their careers.
There is a lot of competition in horticulture; many breeders are racing to develop and patent new varieties, and growers are competing for market share. But our industry has always been supportive of each other. We help each other out and learn from each other. Geneiva showed us that there are people out there rooting for us, even when we may not be rooting for ourselves.
