I’m a feminist, I always have been. Something about that word has such a negative tone.

So here is my personal definition on what it means to be a feminist.

It means I believe every woman AND man has the right to chose their own life path – whether it be becoming the CEO of a company or staying at home and raising a family. It means I believe in equal pay and equal rights. My definition is that basic and simple.

It doesn’t mean I hate men. Quite frankly, I actually love men. I’ve even been called boy crazy.

Yep, I love sex just as much as the next person. No, every one night stand isn’t me protesting the status quo.

It doesn’t mean I don’t shave my legs. I love that clean shaven feel just as much as the next person.

It doesn’t even mean I’m career oriented. I just want the choice, to decide for myself what’s right.

It means I want to educate people naively assuming we’ve plateaued. It means I want people to realize that equally qualified women still make .80 for the same job as their male counterparts. That that statistic still exists.

I want to educate people that women starting their own companies are often asked if they have kids or what birth control they’re taking. I get it. It’s a legitimate question when asking for funding – do you have a family life? Something that keeps you preoccupied. However, I do question how many males get asked this.

Being a feminist, doesn’t mean I’m naive. I’m just as careful as the next person while walking late. To be honest, I understand it’s basic biology, men are stronger. It’s not something I necessarily like. But, I’m not naive, walking around without a care in the world, mistakenly assuming I could take any male counterpart.

Being a feminist means, I believe in having the choice. That’s it.