A couple of years ago, I was introduced to my next guest on the Brave Writer podcast through Instagram. I was taken in immediately by her sense of style and yes, her age. As someone heading into my senior years, she instantly gave me hope that I could find the next right thing to do with my life—and to do it looking fabulous! Clothes have always been self-expression for me (at least when I leave the house!). And my guest has that talent of using her personal fashion sense to express attitude, passion, and all sorts of personalities.
Suffice to say: I’m a huge fan! I see today’s guest as a role model for my future. She’s got nearly a million Instagram followers, and has even been featured in television commercials for GoDaddy.
Please welcome my new friend Lyn Slater, the Accidental Icon (@iconaccidental). She has multiple degrees and lives in New York where she taught social work at Fordham University for 20 years. She’s a fashion icon, true, but what really got me even more interested in her was her career in the field of social work and academics—a true critical thinker! Throughout her teaching career, she balances creativity with thoughtfulness for learning and education. She’s also a person of integrity and depth.
Lyn started Accidental Icon when she had trouble finding a fashion blog that offered an urban, modern, and intellectual aesthetic for women who live what she calls “interesting but ordinary” lives in cities. Women who – like her – aren’t celebrities, but are smart, creative, fashion-forward, thoughtful, engaged, and comfortable with who they are.
Listen to the Podcast
Show Notes
How Social Work Shaped Lyn’s Thinking and the Importance of Context
While working with young women from a criminal justice perspective, Lyn realized that, so often, their issues were not about crime, but trauma and abuse. These women weren’t criminals; they were victims. This led to her shifting into social work and taking a more clinical approach to the work she did. Being a social worker allowed Lyn to see glimpses into a world that people who come from privileged backgrounds, like her, never get to see.
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