When Trailblazing Chooses You: Isata on Leading Like a Quiet Storm 

“Do you like being called a trailblazer?” Julia asked. 

Isata paused. 
“I don’t even think I’ve ever been called a trailblazer,” she said. “But yes — I would really love to be called one. It would be an acknowledgement of the path we’ve created and continue to create for others.” 

That line sets the tone for everything that follows. 

In her conversation with Julia, Isata Kabia speaks gently but with unmistakable conviction. She talks about courage, responsibility, and the quiet kind of leading that rarely makes noise but always makes movement. 

For Isata, trailblazing is not an identity you choose. 
“Sometimes,” she said, “being a trailblazer chooses you.” 

The Weight and Gift of Being “First” 

When Julia asked whether trailblazing felt like a burden, Isata reflected: 

“It depends on how you see your work. For me, the work I do doesn’t feel like work. It feels like my life mission.” 

She spoke about how women often begin their work not for recognition but out of responsibility — because something needs to change, because someone needs to act, because waiting is no longer an option. 

And so you take the step. 
Even when you cannot see ten feet ahead. 
Even when the wins are not visible yet. 

For Isata, acknowledgement isn’t vanity — it’s fuel. 
“When things get hard… being acknowledged for your efforts is enough.” 

The Quiet: Strength Without Noise 

When Julia asked why her children’s books describe the girl as a quiet storm, Isata explained the first half of it — the quiet. 

Quiet strength, she said, is deeply misunderstood. 
“Our way of wielding power is usually bullish, overbearing… power over. But the quiet storm is about power with.” 

Quiet does not mean small. 
It means thoughtful. 
It means intentional. 
It means leading through connection. 

“The most powerful people are the quiet ones,” she said. “Leadership is about doing. It’s not really about talking. Communication builds connection, but action builds change.” 

Quietness, for Isata, is the space where thinking happens. 
What can we do next? 
What can we do better? 
What can we do together? 

This is the quiet before the storm — not hesitation, but preparation. 

The Storm: When Power Must Be Challenged 

Then Julia asked, “Why the word storm?” 

Isata didn’t hesitate. 

“The storm comes when you challenge power,” she said. “Anyone trying to change the status quo is going to encounter a storm.” 

When there is injustice, when the vulnerable are at risk, when the silence becomes harmful — that is when her quiet becomes a storm. 

“She’s quiet when there is peace and tranquillity,” Isata said of the girl in her book. “And she becomes the storm when there is an injustice to be fought against.” 

Quiet strength and fierce courage are not contradictions — they are a combination. 
“Leadership meets nurture as well as force.” 

Leading for the Next Generation 

Later in the conversation, Isata spoke about storytelling and her work with children. 

“Every act of courage is important,” she said. Not just for you, but for your friends, for your community, for the world you are trying to build. 

She explained why her books matter — why she creates stories for children in Sierra Leone. 

“We are told by elders, ‘You can’t change us anymore, go work on the little kids.’ So I figured — let me try working on the little kids.” 

Stories, she believes, are how you plant courage before it is needed. 
How you build leadership before it is tested. 
How you shape the next generation before they are asked to shape the world. 

What Isata Leaves You Thinking About 

Isata’s conversation lingers because it offers a different image of leading — one that is quiet in tone but strong in practice. 

Here’s what her story leaves with you: 

1. Trailblazing isn’t always a choice. 
Sometimes the moment chooses you, and you step forward because something inside you refuses to stay still. 

2. Quiet is not weakness. 
Thoughtfulness is a form of power. Action — not volume — is what changes things. 

3. Courage grows community. 
Every brave act strengthens someone else. Courage is contagious. 

4. Challenging power comes with storms. 
If you are reshaping the status quo, resistance is part of the work. Prepare for it. 

5. Leadership is nurture and force together. 
Be calm when there is peace. Be a storm when justice requires it. 

Listen to the full conversation between Julia Middleton and Isata Kabia here on the Women Emerging Podcast. 

About the guest 

Isata Kabia is the Founding Director of Voice of Women Africa, an organisation that empowers women in Sierra Leone and strengthens their participation in public life. She also founded AFRiLOSOPHY, a programme launched in 2015 that provides training in manufacturing, financial management and entrepreneurship to help women build economic independence. Her work is grounded in the belief that when women are strong — economically and collectively — they shape communities, challenge power, and rebuild futures.