My Personal Commitments on International Women's Day

This morning I had the opportunity to hear Tacy Byham, CEO of DDI and a foremost expert on women in leadership, discuss how (and why) to ignite the impact of women in the workplace. As Tacy shared data, stories and advice I found myself rapidly jotting down insights.

Yet even as my hands flew over the keyboard my mind struggled to commingle my feeling of enthusiasm for advances that have happened in recent years (commitments to equal pay by major employers, increased appointments of females to C-level roles) with my feeling of vexation around the many barriers that still exist (disproportionate numbers of male promotions, under-representation of female leaders in several industries and regions).

Thankfully, as the day went on I encountered encouraging articles, read motivating twitter streams, and had exchanges with colleagues and friends that coalesced into a new feeling: one of progress.

The progress mentality gave me permission to remain dissatisfied by the inequality faced by women, but with the caveat that this dissatisfaction must be accompanied by action to keep progress happening. With that in mind, here are two areas where I am committing to do my part:

Addressing the Confidence Gap

As shown in this image, there is a major difference in the amount of confidence experienced by men compared to women. This leads to men being more likely to seek out promotions and stretch assignments, whereas women will 'keep their head down' and focus on developing new skills and gaining valuable experiences... without raising their hand for new opportunities.

In fact, one internal study at Hewlett Packard showed that men will apply for a job if they match 60% of the requirements. Women, on the other hand, apply only once they meet 100% of the requirements. And, as Tacy shared, when asked how they achieved success and climbed the career ladder men will say "because I'm great" whereas women will answer "because I got lucky."

I believe our environment plays a significant role in creating this disparity, so my first commitment is to reinforce the confidence of the women in my environment. I commit to praise them for their work, encourage them to pursue opportunities, and celebrate their successes.

My first commitment is to reinforce the confidence of the women in my environment. I commit to praise them for their work, encourage them to pursue opportunities, and celebrate their successes.

I had an unexpected opportunity to practice this today when a teenager I was chaperoning at a trampoline park broke his arm. He was treated by a female paramedic who, immediately upon arriving, took effortless command of the staff, injured child, and her team to ensure appropriate steps were taken to treat the wound while also dealing with the teenager's pain, his mother's distress over the phone, and coordination with local hospitals - all while holding the teen's arm in both hands. I approached her before the ambulance left and told her she had done a tremendous job in a stressful, hectic situation. I hope her confidence remains high.

Connecting Women with Advocates

Just as the confidence gap is an unfortunate side effect of environmental influences, in many workplaces today employees are offered a 'choose your own adventure' approach to learning, making it very challenging for women to connect with advocates in the form of coaches and mentors. Demonstrating this lack, Tacy shared that 63% of women have never had a mentor of any kind.

Not having a mentor can be a real disadvantage to women in the workplace, which is proven by the fact that employees with formal mentors are 1.4 times as likely to be promoted.

I have been fortunate to be on the receiving end of multiple informal mentorships, and on the giving end of two formal mentorships, all of which have taught me valuable lessons about how to approach these relationships in a mutually beneficial manner. I am also blessed with a strong network of gender parity advocates - both men and women - who are excellent coaches and influential leaders. So, my second commitment is to leverage my network to help women make new connections with advocates and, when possible, cultivate new relationships between mentors and mentees.

My second commitment is to leverage my network to help women connect with advocates and cultivate new relationships with mentors (and mentees).

Paying It Forward

A few days ago while organizing old files I came across a note my mother wrote to me when I was in high school. In the note she praises me for my self-assuredness and confidence (and cheekily warns me not to let it develop into conceit). Another coveted note in the box is from a family friend who I consider to have been my first mentor; a gentleman who my parents wisely encouraged me to befriend despite an age difference of over 50 years.

This supportive, affirmative parenting has been instrumental to my development of a healthy level of confidence. I will consider it a huge accomplishment, not to mention incredibly gratifying, if I can pay this forward in some small way for the women in my life. On that note, here's a shout-out to my sisters, who are each completely self-confidant in their own way, who consistently tackle new and challenging adventures, and who unfailing over-achieve when doing so. They are an inspiration to men and women everywhere.

I'll leave you with a final piece of data to use in your own journey as a high-achieving woman or women's advocate in the workplace: the best-performing organizations have more women in leadership. Hard to argue with that! Let's all work together to make leadership a viable choice for women everywhere.