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These three little girls opted to dress as the women from Hidden Figures for Halloween. When I saw their photo pop up on Twitter, I immediately smiled at how adorable they were. Then, I began to realize the significance of their costumes.

Halloween is a time to dress up like your heros or pretend to be something you dream of becoming. According to the National Retail Federation report, 3.7 million children will dress as their favorite superhero, and 2.9 million will dress as princesses this year. That is a lot of princesses. Seriously, how many variations of princess have rung your doorbell on past Halloweens?

Who you idolize, is who you end up striving to become. These girls bucked the princess trend that millions of their peers embrace. They elected to portray women in STEM who changed history. I believe this is a positive sign of the times. Young girls are being exposed to strong women, women in tech, and even Wonder Woman. The way this generation views women and power is well beyond that of princess status.

I would love to be able to fast-forward life and see these girls in their 30’s. I have a strong suspicion that they will be founding and/or running tech companies or contributing to major advances in technology or medicine. The role models they’ve associated with will serve them well as they grow into women comfortable with the power to change any industry, and in short, the world.

So, if you’re in my neighborhood trick or treating tonight please know that young ladies portraying powerful, smart women will be receiving double candy! I am only too happy to help reinforce their positive connection to those roles.

Photo Credit: @zellieimani