Women supporting women can be the best way to foster learning, encouragement, and seek advice. Females's participation in business as consumers, employees, owners, or stakeholders has been on an unprecedented rise. Ironically, females still find themselves sidetracked, a matter of enormous concern. Therefore, women supporting each other is a positive way forward.
There have been several research on this topic, which clearly indicate that females reach the highest level of success when their core circle is made up of women. Women supporting each other leads to the upliftment of the entire tribe. This is one of the best ways to empower females. Also, this will lead to diminishing biases and prejudices against women. We have come a long way in recognizing women's power and their due worth. However, it is still a long road ahead. The entire outlook of women's empowerment will transform when there is tremendous support amongst women themselves.
Circle of Trust
The McKinsey study 'Women in the Workplace,' which is now in its seventh year, reveals that since 2016, the same trend has been observed in which females are promoted to managerial levels at lower rates than their colleagues. This, in turn, leads to the slow progression of females to senior levels. The increased representation of women can happen only if the women in senior positions lend an uplifting hand to females trying to make a mark. Women supporting each other can leverage the other's skills, efforts, and potential.
Mentor Other Women
It is generally observed that mentoring amongst females is less. When a woman mentors another woman, it builds trust and opens new doors of progression for female employees. Also, females learn from each other's experiences since the senior woman leader's flight up the ladder may not have been smooth. It can be a great learning experience. Mentoring amongst women could be one of the best ways of extending support and uplifting.
Getting it Back the Right Way
Most of us would have come across females demeaning other females, gossiping, and even using derogatory words. This is how the conservative approach works. Now is the time to completely reverse the trend and address it as honestly as possible. A successful woman corporate leader or an entrepreneur adopts an honest and compassionate approach. That is the way forward for her. According to a study, 70% of women report being bullied by other women's co-workers. Another study substantiates that those females who have a circle of women contacts are more likely to achieve senior positions with more salaries and even higher authority. If you give it the right way, you are most likely to receive it back the right way too.
Networking with other Women
There are specific networking groups as well as events for women. It is essential to be part of these associations for a woman executive. This could be her space where she shares her challenges and talks about the hurdles that she faces and the bottlenecks that she fixes. She needs to communicate about her journey and listen to others' stories. This is a healthy way to maintain sanity and drive. Listening to other females and their inspiring ways of handling situations can prove to be encouraging. There is a comforting factor in it when women network with other females.
Celebrate the Triumphs of Other Women
When you celebrate the success of other women, it will inspire you subconsciously and makes you stand in a positive light. Supporting and cherishing other women's achievements is one of the strengths that will reflect positively on you. It shows your strength of character, work ethic, and professionalism. Not just celebrating but understanding the strategy adopted will enrich your own learning curve. Females who support other females are noticed as positive team players who can be great assets to the company.
Natural Synergy at Play
Women interacting with females find themselves at ease physically as well as mentally. Those who are able to leverage this natural ease are the ones who derive positivity. There can be women who get into the loop of tarnishing other females, but this is simply the opposite of productive work culture. Women supporting women will find themselves getting ahead in their career path due to their sheer positivity, open midframe, and comprehensive approach.
Pandemic - Most Appropriate Time to Extend Support
Undoubtedly, this has been the most challenging time for women at work. A McKinsey study reveals that the pandemic continues to take a toll, with women significantly more burned-out than men. The silver lining is that females have risen to the situation handling the added stress and exhaustion. This is also the time to support other females. Who better than another woman can understand the increased responsibility, the suffering, the increased pressure to contribute to family income, and all the additional burdens that females face in the age of the pandemic?
Time to Break Stereotypes
Traditionally, it has been believed that females cannot support each other. There are many who succumb to this fallacy. However, this is the right time to rise above the conventional mindsets and consciously embrace the support you can receive as well as extend to other females.
Females are making tremendous efforts to rise and shine. This entails a lot of hard work, sacrifice, and an unbeatable drive to carve a niche for themselves. Women are overcoming many challenges, including rigid mindsets and gender biases. It has been seen that when a woman tries to make it big, the challenges increase manifold. Extending support to another woman is a sign of strength. Therefore, it is never too late to open the horizons of your mind and encourage and support other females. It is always the right time to break bias and elevate each other.
Leave a comment
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *