WORKSHOP: LEAD FROM WITHIN
An empowered woman empowers more women around her and leads with empathy. Owing to the socio-cultural norms and years of social conditioning, women develop a certain mindset and behaviour when it comes to making career choices, be it seeking better opportunities, accepting key roles made available to them or asking for training, promotion or a pay raise that is due to them.
Owing to these barriers, with time, there is a confidence gap and a leadership gap that develops.
A few instances:
- Women wish to accept projects and role only if they fit the bill exactly. They try to look and find for a perfect fit as they don’t want to fail over. They are risk-averse.
- Women tend to give up or reject currently available projects and roles, anticipating additional personal responsibilities and family responsibilities and hence optout from projects much before they need to step back.
- Women also find it difficult to admit that they are ambitious or are willing to prioritise work over family, as they believe they would be looked down upon for making that choice
- Several personality traits like being assertive, aggressive, task oriented etc that are considered as desirable ‘leadership traits’ in men, are not appreciated in women. Women who exhibit such leadership characters are considered unlikable. Women can either have leadership qualities or be liked, not both.
Companies that have a higher percentage of women in senior positions tend to be more successful. This is one of the reasons many organizations are now focused on having more women in leadership positions across levels. It can be achieved only if women are identified in the early stage of their career and are groomed to assume leadership positions later on.
