The Role Model And The Unicorn

I'm a child of the 80’s. My most formative years in High School and University saw Helen Clark as Prime Minister, Sian Elias as Chief Justice and Dame Catherine Tizard as Governor General. All. At. Once. I took for granted that women could attain and hold leadership roles with the same ease as men and was likely too young (distracted) to notice the public or media criticism, sexism and bias they received. I looked ahead to my own future with the mindset, maybe even expectation, that I could do or be anything.

This continued after I graduated and joined the workforce as a fresh engineer at L’Oréal. These leaders included my very first manager, our department director, and later my manufacturing production unit manager. All were incredibly respected within the company. They were smart, hard working, professional women who had open ambitions and happily made time to talk about their experiences from fresh engineers to great leaders (all three have continued on with stellar careers). Their proximity, openness and background made them relatable and made me feel like I could aspire to follow the kind of trajectory they followed. They were the best role models that 23 year old Amelia could have asked for, although their true impact on me wasn’t noted until later.

I na?vely assumed that I would be surrounded by professional role models, women in senior leadership positions in the area I chose to follow, throughout my working career. In hindsight, I should’ve anticipated this was not always going to be the case when switching to a Production Operations career in Oil and Gas (there are less than 10% females in the entire discipline!). However what the experience taught me was something far more valuable and refined my own view of what a professional role model really is.

All too often, in an effort to showcase diversity, companies will post bios about or hold panels with their most senior women leaders. As I grew into my own career and began noting challenges, bias and setbacks, these women’s roles seemed totally unattainable. This hit me as a new operations supervisor, 30 weeks pregnant with my first child, on a women’s professional development course. We were introduced to a VP who was only a few years older and pitched as a great role model (“look, this could be you!”). She had children, immaculate hair, Louboutins, a Theory suit and talked as if her already impressive career was only beginning. Alongside the (clearly unfair) superficial judgement, my mind raced with self doubt; Did I really want to be like her? Should I have attained this by now? Did she walk in heels with a bump as big as mine?! In my mind, this woman was a unicorn.

Shortly after the event I reflected with my closest girlfriends, a professional girlsquad of engineers in the industry and with whom regular d&m's are as critical as development courses. We all agreed that while it’s inspiring and important to have visibility to women in the most senior roles (those who sometimes seem like unicorns), what we really valued was talking to women who have made it past the next hurdle we’re facing. Or the one after that. Whether it’s how to push for that first job progression after a grad role. How to survive the first months at work after parental leave while you question your priorities. How to keep focused on well-being in a high intensity job. How to execute a career change.

Personally I find it’s the women who have made it past the challenges that are real to me, and can still remember them well enough to give relevant advice, that make excellent mentors and role models. Much like my leaders at L’Oréal and like many other women and close friends in my current industry that I’ve been privileged to have exposure to. Of course there are men too. But when I consistently sit in teams, meetings and workgroups as the only women (or one of a handful) in the room, it is the female role models out there smashing it who keep me motivated.

What I’ve also come to realise is that no-one is a unicorn all of the time. But everyone has unicorn moments. So make sure to celebrate them, share them and be proud of them - you never know who you might be inspiring.