Women's History Month . . .

As Women’s History Month comes to a close I wanted to share what has been on my mind since last year.

Research shows women are severely underrepresented in conference rooms, leadership roles, and boards around the world. Yes, unless you live under a rock I know you’ve heard a thing or two about this at one point or another.? What I hope though is that you’ll hear me out and read on through to the end.? Then make a dedicated effort to be part of the change we ALL need.

Representation is more than just being able to look around and see others that might look like me in roles of leadership and influence; it’s about being able to look around and feel as though I truly belong.? Not “fit in”; I’ve learned how to do that. I’ve learned how to be “one of the guys”.? To play the part to be heard and gently elbow my way into tables to have my ideas or hard work noticed.

Today, we see women holding positions of power. Thank goodness. After all, we are still, as we always have been, half the world. Which begs the question: if we share this world in equal numbers, why aren't we valued equally? Because the ongoing disgraceful reality is that women are not valued equally.

Research shows that men have six times more influence in group discussions than women. Women are twice as likely as men to say they have to provide evidence of their competence, or that people are surprised at their abilities. And women of color are much more likely than white women to say this. If you're working-class or disabled, the gap gets bigger still.

Frustrating reality, right?

It all comes down to how we all perceive, react to, and interact with women. We need to make changes to ourselves, to our workplaces and to the world around us. Sadly, even women are biased against other women.

In the workplace we must make sure we are genuinely hiring and promoting on merit. One study found that 70 percent of men will rate a man more highly than a woman for achieving exactly the same goals. Women with exactly the same qualifications as men are 30 percent less likely to be called for a job interview. If you have only one woman on a shortlist, the chances of appointing her are extremely slim. This bias is telling us that men are the natural holders of this job, and that appointing a woman would be risky. We must recognize this and hold ourselves accountable for this thinking to change.

We also need to actively encourage talented women to apply for their next career step. Discuss the earned right for the promotion with their up-line.? Because women are socialized to be less confident and less self-promoting than men. And if we do act confidently, people often don't like it and they start calling us words like “arrogant” or “pushy. Toxic perceptions like this creates an unhealthy environment for women when they fear reactions that could become career limiting for simply approaching their career exactly the way a man does. Which is why it's also really important not to fall for the confidence trick, to mistake confidence for competence, because they're absolutely not the same thing.

An academic paper, unusually entitled "Bullshitters. Who Are They and What Do We Know about Their Lives" found that teenage boys are significantly more likely than girls to pretend to understand mathematical concepts that didn't even exist. Yes, really. And this relative male overconfidence persists into adulthood. So if we take overconfident men at their word, we're going to be much more likely to hire or promote them, even if they're nothing like as competent as their female counterparts.

Representation matters everywhere. But once we get used to seeing women as successful, intelligent, equal in the workplace, we're going to find it much easier to include them equally in our daily lives. We have to understand that when women flourish and their talents and their creativity flourish, then the world flourishes and men flourish. We all flourish.

#womenshistorymonth #equality #opportunity #bias #hireher #promoteher

To every woman navigating her path with passion and resilience - your strength is unparalleled, and your worth is immeasurable. I celebrate with you today and every day. Join us on Instagram at @womenbuildingbettertables