Hey guys, guess what! All we want is EQUALITY. There, was that so hard?
Wait, no. That doesn’t mean we want to take rights away from men. How did you even …(Proceeds to tear hair out).
The Boys’ Club is still a thing. For proof, look no further than the recent confirmation of a petulant, entitled frat boy to the highest court in the land, or the overgrown baby who currently occupies the White House.
Clearly, we need to do better. And expect better. One place where changes can and should start happening immediately is at the workplace. Equality should be on everyone’s agenda, and here are some areas we need to start with.
DEFINITION OF SUCCESS
It’s time to expand our definition of success, plain and simple. Money, power, status are great. But what about what about emotional intelligence and empathy? What about those who can’t #hustleharder because they’re caregivers or juggling kids, a family, and a career?
Anne Marie Slaughter said it best in her TED talk: “Real equality does not just mean valuing women on male terms. It means creating a much wider range of equally respected choices for women and for men.”
INCLUSION
It’s a tale as old as time. Girl joins predominantly male workplace. Girl tries to be the “cool girl” and be one of the boys. Boys still exclude girls from golf outings, sporting events, or other male-centric activities. Boys build a rapport with their male bosses and get promoted faster even though a girl is just as (if not more) qualified.
This will keep happening unless companies hire more women! I’m not suggesting affirmative action, but workplaces could stand to be more diverse. Oh, and while we’re at it, let’s have a diverse set of team-building activities.
PROMOTION
Men typically promote other men. Why that happens in industry after industry isn’t a straightforward, one-size-fits-all answer. But it is, nevertheless, true.
You see this even in Digital Marketing. Look up any list of Top Digital Marketers, and it’s all men. Does this mean there are no competent women worthy of recognition? Nope! It’s because these men keep promoting each other – appearing on each others’ podcasts, YouTube channels, and articles.
So what can we do about it? Simple. Promote more women.
Sure, it may take a little more work to find the top women in your field because they don’t enjoy as much exposure and PR. But once you do, elevate them. This is definitely something we’re making more of an effort to do on The 9to5 MisFits.
[Read More: 9to5 Misfits: 7 Tips To (Effectively) Deal With A Layoff]
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS
There’s a lot of things men do at the workplace without realizing why it’s bad — men looking only at other men while talking to a mixed group, women being talked over or ignored, men asking the only woman on the team to take to take on admin duties (taking meeting notes, ordering lunch).
As isolated incidents, these seem harmless. But it’s death by a thousand cuts. It leads to women not being taken seriously and getting passed over for promotions.
The solution? Men need to become more aware. And ladies, we need to take a stand, however subtle. Don’t let the boss treat you like a glorified admin. Push back a little.
MOTHERHOOD
Motherhood is somehow seen as an inconvenience. How dare you take the time to birth a human being and take care of it?! So weak!
I never understand this country and its appallingly bad practices around maternity leave and lack of support for new moms.
The best thing we can do is to start petitioning our companies to have better policies. And to elect women in positions of power who can actually bring about change.
CONCLUSION
It’s hard out here for a woman. I know, a lot of us aren’t in a position to make sweeping changes at the workplace or in government. But we can at least start by becoming aware and educating others around us. And taking a stand!
How about we reverse “death by a thousand cuts”? Victory by a thousand small wins? Doesn’t roll off the tongue as nicely, but you get what I mean. We’ve got this, ladies!
The 9to5 MisFits are a YouTube duo made up of 2 best friends, Pavi Dinamani and Namrata “Nammy” Sirur, who happened to be unemployed at the same time for different reasons. Realizing that there was so much comfort in having a “buddy” to navigate this uncertain phase with, they decided to give others a virtual buddy in the form of their YouTube channel and create a support system and encourage an open and honest dialogue about unemployment.
