In a recent article from Governing magazine, “Why Women’s Presence in Politics Has Stagnated,” I was unpleasantly surprised to see female legislators are still at the same percentage level, roughly, as they were in 1997. What an unpleasant discovery it was to read that. I believe a lot of us just assumed progress was going on. And unfortunately legislative positions do not seem to be the only areas of lag. Of the over 9,000 International City/County Management Association members only 23% are women. Even more depressing is that the percentage of women in those chief administrative positions have reminded dismally consistent at 13% since 1981. I feel I am part of the problem as without organization’s such as The Legacy Project in Illinois or other data gathering entities I would still be rolling along feeling it is all getting better. Sadly, without a conscious, focused effort and review of government culture, either as individual entities or overall, along with data mining, progress will not magically come. How do we know this? Numbers don’t lie. And just in case equity isn’t a motivator within your organization, women bring a dynamic into an organization’s culture that is often extremely conducive to increased positive customer service, increased return on investment, etc. So if you are not motivated by social progress, there is certainly enough data out there showing more women in leadership positions equate to increased profitability and in the case of government, wise use of tax payer dollars. The graph below is going on three years old, but based on the figures I’ve seen lately is a fair visual representation providing a great overview of where the U.S. stands internationally when it comes to government and non-government female management. It is an additional indicator demonstrating how far U.S. government entities have fallen behind.
Communication, Foundation To Success
Commit To Mutual Support, Double Your Success
I saw the above in a random post this morning. I’d like to take that 2% and up it to the 20% reminder Pareto’s Law conveys. Shape it how you want to, 20% of the people in your life cause 80% of the problems, 80% of your time goes to 20% of your customers, etc. No matter how you frame it, it is a great reminder of really taking a look at how you are distributing your resources and the return on investment, be it financial, emotional, etc. you receive. Recently I’ve noticed my 2nd and 3rd quarters have been time starved yet not financially productive. I’ve taken a look at where my time is going. And true to formula, 80% of my time is going to 20% of the people in my life, which happen to have a low to no return on investment for me, relationship wise, business wise, productivity wise, etc. A very ‘people pleasing’ dynamic grew out of this 20% at some point, and unchecked that dynamic has grown like a field of weeds. Consequently I have the majority of my time being sucked up by people with their hands out. Don’t get me wrong I believe in mentoring, supporting, even volunteering. The risk factor to stay aware of is when we fall out of balance and there is no mutual benefit. I’m not suggesting there always has to be a mutual benefit on every human interaction you have, but odds are you have a lot of responsibility in your life and need to be cognizant of what will build you up, and what will tear you down. It is true, if you identified a 2% shift there would be an impact. Realistically though, odds are if you invest the time you can identify over a 20% factor that would significantly change your daily life, and subsequently your life as a whole. The challenge is one, carving out time for evaluation, and two, having the courage to set down and walk away from those things that no longer serve your mental, financial and/or physical well-being. I’ve recently completed step one, and now begin step two. Step two will not be an easy journey for me, and perhaps at times unpleasant, but I do know that doing the ‘work’ to make it happen contributes to not only further empowering myself, but perhaps even empowering another by modeling the behavior.
Ignore Them
Setting a goal is the easy part. Staying focused is when the challenges kick in. And perhaps one of the biggest distractions on the path to achieving a goal is when others question your goal. Recently I coordinated a TEDx event. One of the speakers, a successful English Channel swimmer noted the feedback she often got/gets in regards to such an accomplishment is negative feedback. You see people tend to belittle or deconstruct your goals, for reasons that have nothing to do with you. Bottom line, if you succeed in doing whatever amazing, juicy, courageous thing you’ve set out to do, it reminds others that setting and reaching goals is possible. Expect a direct correlation between the size of your goal and the negative pushback you receive, the greater the goal, the greater the pushback. Expect it, but do not accept or internalize it. Other people’s criticism most of the time, close to all of the time, has nothing to do with you and everything to do with them.
Women, The Workplace & Self Esteem – Like Watching A Rerun
My summer reading pile is almost all books about women. Books about women in the nineteenth century, women and self esteem, women and leadership, women in politics, etc. All very interesting, all research for articles and a book I’m drafting out. And while these books are interesting, all too often there is a common thread that tugs at the back of my mind, women as a gender are often stagnant regarding the women’s issues talked about in the 1970s and on. We still have not resolved many of the challenges women face in society and the workplace, and at times it seems like in the past they were easier to address, as now, when you bring them up in certain circles an example of an outlier will be thrown into the conversation as if that woman was the norm. For me, reading these books is often like watching reruns of the late 80’s early 90’s hit Designing Women, deeply unsettling when the realization that so many of the concerns, issues and challenges of decades ago still exist today. I’m constantly amazed how many successful women, whether at home or in the workplace still feel their contributions are not noteworthy. And I’m still sadly surprised when I hear, as I did last week, why women do not belong in leadership roles, or hear a woman in the workplace referred to as a “bitch.” I deeply believe that if we start paying more attention to the dynamics that surround us we can improve and progress from where we are as a society in regards to women, to where we often assume we are, and where we strive to be. There is currently a gap, and a big one at that.
Inclusion
One of the greatest hurdles to productive group implementation is one of the easiest to solve, listening. Was everyone heard is a major indicator in whether or not the product of a decision will be implemented and the percentage of support it will receive. When we look at the model of group decision making – orientation, discussion, decision making, and implementation – it’s easy to identify where verbal contribution factors in. So the path is clear. The challenge is the engagement piece. Is everyone’s voice being heard? Is everyone being asked to contribute. Even if someone does not have something to contribute, the request and offer for them to contribute is critical, as is the sense of inclusion. Whether one decides to contribute or not, has less impact on outcomes than whether or not they felt included. A sense of inclusion is paramount to the decision to support the outcome. What’s all of the above mean? Want to tank your project quickly? Have someone who was involved in the project bad mouth it.
The Neuroscience Of Positive Leadership
Research on the neuroscience of positive leadership, to me, seems like the best idea ever! If you have positive leadership, creating a positive organizational culture, things start to take care of themselves, ROI, productivity fall into place. http://www.unc.edu/peplab/research.html
Fear Less
http://fearlessstories.com/ I really value some of the information and stories that come across through this online resource. “fear.less” is a free online magazine empowering through stories of overcoming fear. All kinds of examples and all types of contributors make this an appealing resource to entrepreneurs, business leaders, artists, etc. The “About” on their web site says it succinctly, “these stories demonstrate the hidden potential we have to confront our fears and come out victorious.” Enjoy!