When you are a woman entering a traditionally male role you will be focused on your relationships with your male peers and supervisors. But you also need to focus on your relationships with your female co-workers in traditional jobs. You may assume that the women in the office will be cheering for your success however your presence may be as uncomfortable for them as it is for the men
We are told that to rise to the top 1% you have to be very aggressive…cutthroat even. A week ago two billionaires –Carl Icahn and Bill Ackman – went at each other live on CNBC. It was re-aired several times, billed as the “Clash of the Titans” or “The Battle of the Billionaires”. It was ugly. Commentators decided that the battle was very personal. Is this the type of confrontation that they believe keeps women from getting to the top? Do personal attacks make you recede and give up?
During my construction career I witnessed a lot of these “battles” and have participated in my share of them. It is one of the things I hated the most about my job! They wore me down and frustrated me because I thought they were just a plain stupid waste of time and energy. I had more important things to deal with than arbitrary posturing. Eventually I learned better ways to react to these incidents.
I read a book by Chrystia Freeland called Plutocrats – The Rise Of The New Global Super-Rich And The Fall Of Everyone Else. I was interested in the subject because I saw parallels to my Swamp War articles and several ideas I had swimming around in my head.
What are Plutocrats? They are the extremely wealthy class who (supposedly) rule and influence the world based on their wealth. Unlike plutocrats of the past who inherited the wealth, most of today’s plutocrats are self-made millionaires and billionaires, coming from ordinary backgrounds.
Why is it important that women understand Plutocrats?
Because as a society we measure success by wealth and because so few plutocrats are women. Chrystia writes “Consider the 2012 Forbes billionaire list. Just 104 of the 1,226 billionaires are women.” (8%) “Subtract the wives, daughters and widows and you are left with a fraction of that already small number.”
I came across a letter that I want to share with women. This letter is VERY Blue Zone and meant to inspire the overwhelmingly male managers within the company to achieve the 2013 financial goals. I am curious as to women’s reaction to this letter. Does it inspire you?
This is the actual letter – I have not changed much – I left out the company name and specific financial information. But I did keep in all the exclamation points!
I haven’t been able to write while I helped my mother during her declining health. At her funeral some family members noted that she was a woman ahead of her times – she was very independent and went after what she wanted. My mother pursued a nursing career and didn’t marry until later in life. She loved to travel and even as a young woman in the 1940’s ventured out across the country.
Because of my parents I did not grow up with the stereotypes. Neither of my parents believed that a woman’s sole role was to marry and have children. In my father’s family all the women back to his grandmother went to college. He was adamant that life was unpredictable so women cannot rely on a man to always be there to support them. Women should have the education and/or skills to support themselves.
