Making conscious decisions about how we live our lives
I was watching a 60 minutes interview with Sheryl Sandberg this past weekend. She was discussing her new book “Lean In” and the ways in which, in her view, women hold back in promoting themselves in the workplace – particularly when it comes to stepping up into leadership roles. What I liked about her interview (and I’ve just ordered the book) is that while she takes into account there are more established external programs and networks supporting men to reach senior levels, she also addresses ways in which women contribute to holding themselves back, and some of the proactive ways we can help ourselves.
In her 2010 TED Talk “Why we have too few women leaders”… Sheryl Sandberg states, “the data shows, women systematically underestimate their own abilities. If you test men and women, and you ask them questions on totally objective criteria like GPAs, men get it wrong slightly high, and women get it wrong slightly low. Women do not negotiate for themselves in the workforce. A study in the last two years of people entering the workforce out of college showed that 57% of men are negotiating their first salary, and only 7% of women. And most importantly, men attribute their success to themselves, and women attribute it to other external factors.” Having worked in the male-dominated finance industry for many years, and now working as a coach with numerous female clients who also work in the finance industry, I would tend to agree.
But at the end of the day, I’m an advocate of choice. Rise to the top of the corporate world or not; be a stay-at-home mother (father) or not. What I am more interested in is that each of us are addressing our often unconscious limiting beliefs and competing intentions, so that we can make more conscious decisions about our lives; living from a place of joy and fulfillment in whatever we are doing.
The questions I ask my female (and male) clients, is how are you relating to yourself from the perspective of self-worth and owning your own power. Is it a self-honoring choice that you are not raising your hand and reaching for new opportunities in the workplace? Or is it because you feel uncomfortable about giving voice to your authentic power and have forgotten your inherent worth – thereby settling into the “one-down” position to your (male) colleagues. I think at the heart of all of these discussions, is how can we be more authentically ourselves – whether male or female, and how do we follow through with our choices, which at times will stretch us into places of discomfort as we reach our new normal.
Check out Sheryl Sandberg’s 60 minutes segment and TED Talk – worth watching: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50142538n & http://www.ted.com/talks/sheryl_sandberg_why_we_have_too_few_women_leaders.html
Cheers
Julie-Ann
