Women's History Month

More than a writer. Narrator of HERstory.

As Women’s History Month 2025 closes out, I want to do something bold:

I want to shout out ME.

Not because I did anything special. Not because I checked every box society told me to. But because in March 2025, I made a choice:

To live for myself.

For years, I’ve been bound by systems. By titles. By protocol. By regulations that told me what I could say, how I could say it, and who I was allowed to be while I said it.

I served my country. I climbed the ladder in HR. I worked in federal spaces and a Fortune 500 company. And I still felt like something was missing.

What I didn’t realize until now is that what was missing… was me.

The unfiltered me. The creative me. The writing, dreaming, soul-driven me. The one who doesn’t just exist in a role — but thrives in her truth.

March 29th, I created The Ashley Banks Blog. And I didn’t just start a blog —I unlocked a version of myself that I’ve been holding back for years.

I don’t need anyone’s permission to be who I am. I don’t need a title, a uniform, or a corner office. I need my words, my voice, my vision — and I finally gave myself all three.

A transition in real time.

I’m still in transition. Out of the military. Out of the HR world. Out of survival mode.

And honestly, I still struggle to fully explain how unfulfilled I’ve felt. Because for so long, I made everyone else comfortable. Everyone else happy. Everyone else a priority.

But now?

I choose me. Permanently.

I am my own history in the making. And as Women’s History Month 2025 comes to a close, I’m not just honoring the women who came before me — I’m honoring who I am becoming.

A creator. A storyteller. A woman who writes her own narrative instead of shrinking to fit someone else’s.

According to Ashley:

I AM WHO I THINK I AM.

Not who society says.

Not who policy allows.

Not who the job defines.

Me. Fully. Finally. Freely.

And if no one told you today:

You don’t need to wait until next Women’s History Month to start living for you. Start living for you today.

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