First, if it’s YOU that’s constantly battling the forces making you feel like they’re chipping away at your ambition – if you’re feeling like the battle is just too much – then:
- Fight that feeling and know that you’re not alone. Know that it’s not You. The way that you’re being treated is NOT your fault.
- Know that most people aren’t aware they’re the culprit. So approach each day with a mindset of being the best version of yourself, not someone else’s version of you.
- Put yourself out there. You’re here to be part of it…you’re here to have a voice. Focus on that.
Solutions:
- Work to be more aware of your own biases. Do the best you. When you do recognize your biases, control them… do better.
- Seek out ways to increase the visibility of female employees and support the development of more female leaders.
- Sponsor women – give your personal capital to your female colleagues. Sponsors battle bias and sexism so that can get in the way to their female colleagues.
- Ally with women – stand with women; work to push the bias and sexism away from women. Notice and correct instances of inappropriate behavior in a safe, respectful manner.
- Establish metrics to diversify new employee interviews, hires, promotions, internship programs, as well as the diversification of a project team.
- Be a partner/spouse or relative who shares the care for children, elderly parents, or pets.
- Pay to see films made by women, with women as lead characters.
- If you’re in a position of power, help to get work-life balance respected and accepted. Try to model alternative work/life strategies.
- Pay interns. When you offer paid-intern opportunities you not only attract better and more diverse candidates, you are also helping to end a gender pay gap problem.
Did you know that unpaid internships are disproportionately held by women? As the first sign of the inequality they will face in the workplace, an unpaid internship reinforces the idea that women’s work is less valuable than men’s, affects a woman’s negotiating power when they do look for a paid job, and contributes to her lifelong gender pay gap.
- Pay women what they deserve.
- Use these resources to help you know how to ally with and support women and girls. There’s also a tool to help you become more self-aware of your own biases.
