Kirsten Hamstra: Women in the workplace who are also devoted mothers (raises hand) are often stereotyped in having divided loyalties. Can a mom of two really have a focused demanding career that intellectually challenges while still being engaged and present with their family?
Can a mom of two really have a focused demanding career that intellectually challenges while still being engaged and present with their family?
To challenge this, I try to view my colleagues as all having outside interests and responsibilities that they juggle along with work. It’s being well-balanced and finding joy in all of it that keeps me motivated to go for what fulfills me, both personally and professionally.
Catherine Ladousse: The notion of unconscious bias where people might be perceived more by gender than their identity or skills is a real factor in today’s workplaces. It creates specific behaviors with unintentional consequences which in some instances can be defined as sexism i.e. inappropriate comments or discussions on topics which exclude or even criticize women.
In the workplace, we often need to challenge traditional ideas or stereotypes that “women lack authority, are more emotional than men; are less strategic” last but not least, “women have less flexibility and time to focus on their jobs as they juggle multiple tasks at work and at home”.
Rather than these old-fashioned stereotypes, many of these qualities, take multi-tasking for example, are those required to succeed in the new world where we no longer manage hierarchically but where attributes such as emotion, empathy and team work demonstrate the ability to inspire teams and drive them to ambitious goals.
Rather than these old-fashioned stereotypes, many of these qualities, take multi-tasking for example, are those required to succeed in the new world where we no longer manage hierarchically but where attributes such as emotion, empathy and team work demonstrate the ability to inspire teams and drive them to ambitious goals.
Renee Ure: When I began my career, the common stereotypes were women are too nice, women are too emotional, and women are weak. I guess I threw those out the door because none of them fit me.
However, there is another stereotype that did and still does fit me and other women in the workplace. I tend to be too dismissive of positive feedback. I would love to change that in me and let other women know it is okay to receive praise. We might be resistant to praise because we feel we have more to prove than men, so we constantly strive for perfection.
A key goal in my life was to have children. When my career began to heat up, I added the goal of becoming a successful business leader. The ‘conventional wisdom’ of the time in the mid-1980s was I could not do both. One of my male colleagues even took me aside to give me ‘advice’ as I rose up the leadership ladder. He wanted to let me know the time was approaching for me to make a choice between continuing with my career or leaving it behind to start a family.
I’m sure he meant well but I refused to make a choice. The idea that I (or any woman) had to choose was a myth to me. I wanted family and a career, so I set out to disprove that myth.
It was difficult though. Back then, you could not find examples of women who were in the career position I am in today with children. I was fortunate that my partner clearly understood what my personal and professional goals were and supported me every step of the way.
Women can have a career and family, but it is unreasonable to think they should be able to do it all without support. Both parties in a relationship or marriage need to be engaged and share the workload of domestic duties. Open communication and aligned goals are important.
Fiona O’Brien: Unfortunately, there is still an assumption that work/life balance challenges are faced by women alone. Time issues have an impact on both sexes but critically men often escape judgement if they make sacrifices to advance their career. We need to be more honest, step away from the idea of perfection and the myths told about “work/life balance” and simply be kinder to ourselves.