In A Crisis, Why Women Need To Take Charge

In A Crisis, Why Women Need To Take Charge

I built my career on being the person who turned around failing operations and projects. It is really hard work and extremely stressful. It wasn’t until I wrote my article on men and work hours that I really started questioning why I (and the other women in the office) stay in there and do the hard work while the men eventually give up and disappear. I wrote that men have a limit on the number of hours they really work and the amount of stress they could handle. After doing a little research I learned just how right my experiences have been.

Men And Work Hours – It’s All About Image

Men And Work Hours – It’s All About Image

When women entered the male dominated workplace we were confident we had the fortitude to climb the corporate ladder with our kids and family life slung over our shoulder. We knew we were great multi-taskers and time managers. So, there should be nothing barring us from climbing the corporate ladder to success.

But as we started climbing the ladder, what we didn’t count on were the changes men would make in the demands of the workplace. To men, work is a competitive place, where they consistently seek new ways to determine status and dominance. One of the changes they made was to no longer value getting work done quickly and efficiently so you didn’t have to stay late. According to the new values, only expendable employees went home after 8 hours and worked only 40 hours per week.

The Cult of True Womanhood

Did you ever wonder where all this “women are weak, timid and lack self-confidence” stuff came from? We often think of the 1950’s and the visions of the idealistic stay at home mother in her apron and pearls but it actually goes back to the period from 1820 – 1860. This was an age when the Cult of True Womanhood thrived.