#BalanceforBetter

I believe that every one of us is unique. We each are bringing something special forward and not solely based on our gender, race, ethnicity, religion or sexual identity but also from our personal experiences, opportunities that we have taken and of course, our influencers.

Early in my career, I was plugging along as an individual contributor working on a tough requisition and knowing the hiring manager was losing patience with me, my instinct was to go to my manager at the time and pass the baton so I could get back to my day to day work. My manager, at that moment, paused and said "What do you think we should do"? I was a bit stunned, no one had asked me what I thought or how to solve something before, after a bit of a pause I felt like someone had given me some air and I couldn't stop rattling off ideas on how best to tackle this work. While not all of my ideas made sense (I'm sure), things changed for me from that point forward. I felt empowered by someone simply asking me what I thought.

Fortunately (or unfortunately :) ) for all of my bosses from that point forward, I have become quite opinionated about most things. But I do believe that in that moment the company gained value from me that they did not have prior, even if my ideas didn't stick, my voice was heard as part of a larger team. The value in diversity comes from balance of those voices and it is our job, every one of us, to make sure that there is balance in our own company.

We should all do two things today. First, think of those women in your life who have created moments for you, those strong voices that have influenced a decision in your career, or in your life and then think about how you can create that moment for another woman that is near you. If you notice someone is not speaking up in a meeting, ask them 'What do you think?', ask them for coffee so they can help you think differently about a problem you are tackling in your own day, invite them to the meetings where you need another opinion. Second, think about the missing female voices in your company. Search your networks and refer them in, we need them. We need that diversity of thought throughout our companies so that we can be a better world.

We need better balance in this world, better balance with the voices and influences in our lives. You have the power to create this in your own company.