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@letsleadae-blog
Ways to avoid stress!
Worrying about things in life does not provide any reasonable solution, but surely adds on to the problem! This week for #PerceptiveFridays, we elaborates on how worrying can affect people on an individual level and what the ways are to avoid stress as well as gradually annihilate anxiety! Check out the link to read more about it! https://goo.gl/jRxbuQ #PerceptiveFridays #letsleadae #selfimprovement
#WomenCrushWednesday - Serena Williams
For this week's #WomenCrushWednesday, we have Serena Williams, an American professional tennis player. who has earned the title of world number one ranking, with 23 Grand Slam champion titles and 4 Olympic medals. We admire her, not only for her strength to persevere and her strong determination to get back onto her feet after any loss or failure but because she continues to empower and represent women all over the world. She continues to make a difference in the world, even through the formation of the Serena Williams Fund, which has helped build schools in Jamaica so that girls could receive an education. "She turns her disappointment into triumph. Her grief into joy. Her rejections into approvals. If no one believes in her, it does not matter. She believes in herself. Nothing stops her. No one can touch her. She is woman."
Check out the article linked below to read an inspiring open letter by Serena Williams-
https://goo.gl/KcP5IK
Valentine’s Day - Part 2!
What comes once a year covered in pink hearts and candy, with companies pushing their romantic, overpriced activities to couples (and singles)? Or rather, I should ask, what holiday doesn’t come once a year with commercialization taking a free reign over our lives? With the overwhelming advertisements, pressure to put yourself into a box about your relationship status and sometimes, even thoughts about how maybe we should just do away with the day altogether… … the cynic in me tended to agree with these views because let’s face it, Valentine’s day ever since Cupid shot his first arrow was intended to celebrate romantic love. But at some point I thought to myself.. wait a minute. “Love is a many splendored thing..” okay, okay, I didn’t think that right away — but it’s true. Love is a spectrum of so many types of love we’ve chosen to overlook celebrating, and maybe it’s time to stop taking them so much for granted. Maybe it’s time to fight back against commercialization and prove that true love really does conquer all — even 50% off on all pink items at Clothing Store XYZ. When we think of classic princess Disney stories, what always pops into our heads are the damsels in distress and the “true love’s kisses” that stem only from romantic relationships. Back in the 1960’s, Barbie had only one ethnicity and one body type (not to mention legs that simply wouldn’t stay upright without heels on).But the world is changing, and with it companies have no choice but to change the way they think too! Frozen depicted how sisterly love can break an evil curse. Disney’s live-action remake of Sleeping Beauty “Maleficent” showed how we take for granted a kind of love that is so close to us: the love of our parents and guardians.A time in which Barbie’s biggest companion was Ken, and her most promising career depended on her outer beauty is coming to a close only because people spoke up about their disdain for the narrow-minded representation of the dolls: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jan/30/new-barbie-dolls-fashionistas-ripping-off-heads-femininity By all means, don’t miss the chance to celebrate this day with your significant other. But don’t miss out on the chance to celebrate love in a rainbow of ways either. Here are 3 ways you can beat the heat that will burn your pockets this valentine’s day:1. Do something special for your family — the only people who will definitely stand by your side no matter how much your mascara isn’t “on fleek”. But no, seriously. Plan an outing with your family, it doesn’t even have to cost any money: http://traveltriangle.com/blog/free-things-to-do-in-dubai/. There’s nothing better than feeling like no matter what, you’re not alone in this world.2. Away from family? No problem. Take the time to appreciate yourself for all that you’ve done or make a list of all the things you’ve accomplished in life. Sing at the top of your lungs. Dance like nobody’s watching. Show yourself some love, for a change!3. Celebrate friendship. Remember Galentine’s Day that Leslie Knope celebrated on the TV show Parks & Recreation? There’s no rule that says you only have to send clichéd friendship messages on Whatsapp on the umpteen friendship days that exist. Being in the friend zone is sometimes way too underrated if you ask me.If you’re looking at all of this and going *cringe* “I’d rather pretend this day didn’t exist.. hey, that’s alright too! In the words of Rumi: ‘Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it”*mic drop*
#SuperwomanSundays: UAE’s first female director!!
On our #SuperwomanSunday we are celebrating Nayla Al Khaja, She is UAE's first female director. According to the Arabian Business, Nayla has done five short films. She owns a production company D-SEVEN. Through her films, Nayal touches most on social issues and has won several awards for her work. In 2011 Canon Middle East announced Nayla Al Khaja as its brand ambassador in 2011. You can check more about her on the following link: https://goo.gl/vijVyh
Valentine’s Day - A Day to express true Love?
Valentine’s day has lost its value due to commercialization.
Valentine’s day initially began as a day to symbolize our love in the best possible manner, although over time it has taken quite a turn and turned into something rather materialistic than emotional. Constant commercialized ads portray different images of the perfect Valentine’s day which in turn creates not only a hassle for the those who are in a relationship, but also a greater discomfort for those who are single. Currently, the value of a gift has become the measure of love which, one could argue, creates the desire to show-off rather than strengthen their bond.
For those of you that are part of a relationship, could you imagine waking up on Valentine’s Day morning without flowers or chocolates? I bet that you could not. In current days — especially in a world in which you can connect with everyone in your social circle so quickly — people expect big things from Valentine’s Day. With people posting photos on Facebook of the beautiful roses they got and tweeting about what their fancy plans for the night are, it puts a big weight on people’s significant others to buy them gifts and take them out to dinner. This shows how the expectation of Valentine’s Day has changed. What was once a festive time of year to celebrate love has transformed into a day fraught with mere gifts and, in some cases, lack of overwhelming affection.
What would Valentine’s Day be without the candy hearts and the red roses? Well, for sure, a whole lot less sweet. As modern-day humans, we tend to look at Valentine’s Day from only the consumer’s point of view. Valentine’s Day has turned into another way for companies to get money from both, single and committed people. We are to be blamed as well since we partake in this perpetual cycle of spending sprees. After all, we look forward to the flowers, jewelry, and chocolates.
A survey showed that 81% of men in new relationships felt most obliged to buy Valentine’s gifts, the largest group saying they would go along with the traditions. With women in new relationships, half of them said they felt obliged to buy.
Valentine’s Day has evolved to ‘tell’ us what romance is and how we should show it. If a partner doesn’t see these things as important we can feel they’re unromantic, whereas they might be willing to show they care in other ways.
It’s peer pressure that you’re cheap if you haven’t bought your loved one something and year after year it has to be bigger and better and more expensive. Well, if the person you are with loves you they will know this and no amount of sentiment one day a year will change that. Be different and buy flowers or chocolates when you want to, not when a company tells you should. That’s love!
Although Valentine’s Day is the holiday of romance, it is also a time when couples often examine the state of their relationships and decide whether to continue or end them. But even with a break-up, survey respondents’ thoughts were focused on matters of materialism or “faking” the relationship through the holiday, rather than being honest with their partners, moving on to find better relationships and taking care of themselves. When asked about the timing of a break up, 4% of the people said they would hold off until after Valentine’s Day so as not to jeopardize gifts and a nice meal.
What’s more, V-day promotes a desire for co-dependence, which is extremely dangerous for young women as they mature. Let’s just set the record straight- Valentine’s Day is about love, not co-dependence. If you don’t have a romantic valentine,THAT’S OKAY. Be your own valentine! As girls grow up, it is essential that they understand that happiness does not derive solely from a romantic relationship. V-day can be celebrated for other people in your life as well.
But because of this commercial aspect of the holiday, we have begun to forget the true meaning of Valentine’s Day. Even though this commercial aspect of Valentine’s Day will keep growing, we need to get back to the basics of what this holiday is truly about: love. Valentine’s Day is a day to celebrate the people that you love and to remember how loved you are!
One must remember that in every true relation, what matters is the thought or effort of expression rather than a store bought product. Therefore slow down and forget the store, because that’s not how you’ll win. For most people, matters of the heart far outweigh the more materialistic aspects of the holiday. If a gift is given, it should be something truly meaningful. People are craving a sense of real connection in their relationships, and Valentine’s Day is a key moment to celebrate that. At the same time, extravagant shows of gifting are actually far less important than one might think for this particular holiday.
Valentine’s Day has become very commercialised but that doesn’t mean we should throw it out as a bad idea! It’s one day when we get a good excuse to make time in our hectic lives to remember to tell people how much we love them provided that we truly take the effort to make it count. It doesn’t mean that don’t do it all year too but why not have one special day when we all show some extra kindness rather than all this cynicism.
This day has existed as a recognised holiday for hundreds of years. It has always been about expressing love. If you think about it, any gift that has been given as a token of someone’s love would have had to have been purchased somewhere. Even a handmade gift would require raw materials which had to be bought somewhere. So, I guess in that sense, Valentine’s Day has always been, and will always be, commercialised.
But you can go against the commercialism — make your own cards, for example, (more personal and shows real love, not just the ability to pick a card off a shelf), do something nice (cook dinner, give a massage) or just say “I love you”. It’s not rocket science and you don’t have to fork out AED 50 for some roses.
TalkativeTuesday - Can Women have it all?
This #TalkativeTuesday, we’re discussing if women can have it all:
Women are often expected to not only be better than their male counterparts in the workplace, but are also expected to be good cooks, a great home-maker, and the perfect mom once they have kids. It’s like society forgets that there are only 24 hours in a day or something! However, this has led to loads of women trying to do everything at once, and be fantastic in all they they do--something that made people like Indira Nooyi and Anne-Marie Slaughter to stop and say, “Wait. Women can’t actually ‘have it all’. No one can!”
But Sheryl Sandberg says otherwise. She says not only can women have it all, but they have! Though that does sound encouraging, perhaps the key is that we need to challenge what ‘it all’ really means.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcp3Bn4EXi4
What do you think?
Share your opnion! We’d love to hear from you x - https://goo.gl/Z6xqx3
#DiscussionTuesdays: Does social media make us more antisocial than social?
All of us know and love at least some sort of social media weather it be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat or hundreds of others. We have our own ways to stay connected with the rest of the world and we make sure we have our phones around us 24/7. But does this actually reduce the interactions that we have face-to-face? Some studies suggest that social media does in fact reduce the amount of conversations we have while others suggest that social media makes it easier to communicate with others despite them not being present in the same place. Let us know what your thoughts are on the matter.
Check out the article below to learn about how social media affects our interpersonal skills, the way we interact with those around us and for some tips on how to take a short break from our lives online. Voice your thoughts! We would love to hear from you x
- www.facebook.com/letslead.ae/posts/1871529676425873
Throwback Thursdays: Margaret Ekpo — The Lioness in Nigerian politics!
Chief Margaret Ekpo is a common name to the feminists in Nigeria. She single handedly captivated not only the women but also the imagination of the entire nation throughout her political career. Ekpo was not always keen on politics; in fact she only stepped into the world of politics purely by chance.Ekpo’s early passions were more along the line of teaching. However, fate at this point was not on her side and due to the sudden passing of her father she was forced to abandon her education with only her Grade 6 certificates. Since her education was incomplete her dreams of attending a teachers training college were done for. But she did not let this set back deter her from moving forward. She settled for smaller tutoring jobs in order to continue chasing her passions. Take notes ladies.In 1945, her husband, Dr. Ekpo, was miffed with the prejudiced practices of the colonial administrators at the Aba General Hospital. Due to his position as a civil servant, he was unable to attend the protest rallies against such practices and so he just sent his wife. These meetings and rallies are what invoked the lioness within Ekpo.Margaret Ekpo is known for being one of three women appointed to the House of Chiefs, in the 1950s. After attending a few of these rallies (kindly acknowledge that Margaret was the only woman at these events) Ekpo noticed that women were blissfully unaware and detached from the political and social aspects of the Nigerian society. Hence to increase women participation in the society Ekpo went on to form National Council of Nigerian Citizens women’s wing, in order to educate women. As Ekpo’s career in civil rights advanced Ekpo rightfully speculated that women abroad had more of a say in political and civil matters than their equivalents in Nigeria. And she thought to herself, “well that’s not right.” And this is where she started her movement to get more women involved and aware on political and social matters of the society.Ekpo was intensely shrewd and sharp. She proved this when the women in her community would not attend meetings and events because their husbands would forbid them. Being the insightful lady that she was she came up with an ingenious method. She bought all the salt from the local stores and only sold it back only to the women who attended her meetings. We all know that salt is essential to all recipes and so the men in the community had no other choice but to let their wives be a part of Ekpo’s posse.Ekpo particularly piqued my interest because the woman was a total badass. Margaret was strong willed and completely audacious in terms of the risks she took. Some of her moves were so down right daring that even politicians today (- yes, I’m hinting at Trump) would think twice before taking such bold steps.The one thing that I take away from Ekpo’s story is that hustle isn’t just working on the things you like or are passionate about, it means doing the things you don’t enjoy so you can do the things you love. Ekpo had a love for teaching and reaching out to people who were less knowledgeable than herself and she did so without having a degree or any background in politics. That’s what I call a real ace in the pack!
#WomanCrushWedneday - Farewell Michelle Obama <3
As we bid farewell to one of the most elegant woman in known history, this week’s #WomanCrushWednesday is the now former first lady Michelle Obama.
We admire her for a number of reasons from her inspiring speeches about female role models and knowledge for her strong advocacy for woman’s right, education and health. She has achieved so much throughout her time as first lady like launching the let’s move initiative, a program that addresses the challenges of childhood obesity and developing ‘let girls learn’ which was an education initiative to help young girls get education and reach their full potential.
During her last speech she delivered a strong personal message on empowerment through education. “Lead by example with hope, never fear. And know that I will be with you, rooting for you and working to support you for the rest of my life”. This was a quote from her last speech as first lady.
Check out the article linked below to look at some facts about Michelle Obama and to see all that she has achieved through the years - https://www.facebook.com/letslead.ae/posts/1868513200060854
2017: A New Hope
2016 has been a weird year, no doubts about it. We saw some historic geo-political changes, so many celebrity deaths, and all-in-all, it was a pretty hopeless year for humanity.
But let’s not look backward — I’m sure that’s what everyone does this time of year — let’s look ahead instead!
The upcoming year may, just may, become the year things turn around for us. This could be the year you finally land that dream job, get all A’s, or hey, maybe this year, you’ll complete that Nike 5K run (okay, maybe this year I’ll start setting more realistic goals)!
As they say, happiness is a state of mind… an attitude if you will. ‘An Inside Job’, as the saying goes.
So here are some tips to really make 2017 your year:
Manage your money well: Honestly, this is first on the list because most of us live in Dubai — therefore we spend all our money in the first week of getting it, and then spend the next three weeks cooped up at home. If we learnt to manage cash, maybe we can even start saving some of it!
2. Say yes more: Especially to things that excite you, and maybe slightly scare you — carpe diem, my friends!
3. Also, say no more: This time, to things that you really don’t want to do. A very common problem is that we say ‘yes’ to many people regarding several things and we often find ourselves with no time for things that we actually care about. So here’s a reminder: you can say no, and should really start to do so too.
4. Learn a new language: If all the world’s a stage, then we better learn the languages.
5. Meet Up: Quite literally. The best app to exist when it comes to connecting with people who have the same interests as you — be it music, culture, hiking, or movies, is Meet Up. Download it and meet new people!
6. Donate more: Donate — whether it’s your money or your time — to people that really need it. 2016 saw humanity take a hit? Well, then — it’s time you and I contributed in making planet Earth a better place to live in. Pass on the kindness!
7. Save up for something big: The best way to reward yourself for being so great with money (throwback to #1 on this list!) is to spend all the money you saved! Just kidding — but hey, in a world where instant gratification is what we live for, we can all learn from the habit of saving for something — it teaches you money budgeting, and more importantly, patience.
Lastly, and definitely most important:
8. Make more time for your family: regardless of if its your grandparents, a distant relative, close friends, siblings, or your ma and pa, make sure you set aside some time so you can spend quality time with them every month. Nothing pleases them more than your company. Trust me.
With these things in mind, we can make 2017 a little bit better, for you and for me.
So 2017, I welcome you with open arms. Please be good to us!
(And hasta la vitsa, 2016! See ya never!)
- Vanathy Arul
11 LESSONS TO THE YOUNGER ME AND OTHERS
As life moves forward and we grow into this stage of adulthood, we often find ourselves trapped in different kinds of crises. The reasons may differ from dealing and understanding new responsibilities to figuring out yourself and those around you. Often you would be cursing yourself or blaming others for things that are happening in your life but instead you need to know that things will work out eventually. The 22 year old me still feels lost most of the time searching for answers and figuring why some stuff happen in a certain way but then as time passes, things always come around and you learn something new every time which in my opinion is a learning process of our adulthood transition. On the same note, there are few lessons I would like to share today with other young adults who are going through the same transition phase which I wished I’d knew when I started my journey into adulthood:-
1. Differences exist — Every person is different in this world, what may interest one person may not interest the other, what one may possess, the other could lack, the results are endless. You cannot let something that defines one person, define you. You have your own significance, perspective and strengths that make you what you are. This often happens during your adulthood transitions where you keep meeting new people in High School, then in College and then after at workplace.
2. You’re important — You have to acknowledge your own importance, realize your own potential and fulfill what you dream of. Nobody else understands you better than you, even though figuring out yourself will make you feel like you are everywhere but it’s a journey where your thoughts and opinions evolve and you have to stand for yourself.
3. Don’t let yourself down — It’s okay to feel let down, okay to feel lost but never lose the determination or the confidence in yourself. If you don’t do this, the world will bring you down. You cannot expect someone to always be there for you to carry you like a baby (Sometimes we are blessed with great family and friends but it’s a necessity to be independent).
4. Keep Setting Goals — Always set goals, not necessarily they all would work out and you will achieve them all but it will help in keeping you focused. As you grow, goals may change depending on your capabilities, situations and interests but bring that bucket list out, write them wishes and goals down and try to work for it atleast. You never know, you might find something that you would love for the rest of your life!
5. New Experiences — This the phase where you learn the most about people, life and yourself so always allow yourself to explore things around you, pick up new hobbies, try new things, learn things that will help you now and in your future (eg- Cooking), get into a healthy lifestyle, meet new people and let yourself be at ease when you move little away from your comfort zone.
6. Nothing is constant — Things won’t stay constant, they will keep changing. You might feel frustrated at a point of time because something that you wanted is not happening or it is not working out the way you knew it was supposed to but it’s fine. Sometimes we need to put in faith on the upper hand and little bit on us while continuing working on our part.
7. Stop looking for validation — We should keep reminding ourselves that we need to stop reaching out for validation and instead work towards achieving something that gives you satisfaction, happiness and inner peace. Do something because it feeds your soul rather than to please the others because people keep changing so will their expectations.
8. Know what will benefit you(forreal) — I would never say if studying bothers you or if putting in extra effort irks your soul, leave it but doing something to please someone else might in the long run will leave you in a circle of regret. You need to understand why something might be important to you, you need to understand how it may benefit you or help you reach your dreams/satisfy you/ give you peace.
9. Don’t hold back from working hard — Achieving anything in life will require you to work hard at some point of time or maybe at all times. Never turn your back just because you need to work hard for it. You might have always heard the phrase ‘Work Hard, Play Hard’.
10. There is a right time for everything and your priorities will keep changing — There is a right time for everything, many people spend this time beating themselves up behind finding the love of their life. I am not against dating or being with your loved one in any stage of your life but I personally suggest that instead it is more beneficial for you to work on developing themselves and trying new things. Your love and the right person will eventually find you. Also, as you grow, your priorities may change, this is the only time you get to be little selfish where you could do something to develop yourself so invest that time on learning things and growing.
11. People around you will keep changing — This is the stage where you will have different people coming in and out of your life, you might lose on some old friends, make some new friends who will stay by you for the next of the coming years, your relationships may change with different beings of your family or you may tie yourself up in new relationships but it’s a journey, don’t lose out on making good memories with each of them.
You don’t have to be selfish, your happiness may reside in someone else’s happiness, your satisfaction may reside in helping someone, your inner peace may reside in someone else’s peace but just don’t do it for the sake of it, this, most of time backslashes emotionally — lesson I keep learning and today sharing with those who are finding themselves stuck in this situation or slowly falling into this spiral.
Written by Nabeela Amatul
#DiscussionTuesday — How do extroverts deal with introverts and introverts deal with extroverts?
In this big world of ours, there are 7 billion humans existing with 16 different types of personalities but the easy way to differentiate is to bring it down to main two - Introverts and Extroverts. There's always a debate saying that the world is easier for extroverts because they don't have to deal with issues like social anxiety or the incapability of mixing up with people whereas extroverts feel that introverts face less issues when it comes to social expectations. As we move up to the ladder of life, there are times where avoiding people is just not possible. There will be times when you would have to put up with different kind of people coming from different backgrounds and with different nature. Now the question raised is - How do we deal with someone who has an opposite nature? While reading up on this topic. I came across a really good article which talks about how introverts and extroverts can co-exist peacefully, have a look - http://lifehacker.com/how-introverts-and-extroverts-can-peacefully-coexist-638422576
What are your thoughts on dealing with a different kind of personality? Share your views
In the loving memory of a beautiful and inspiring soul.
This #superwomensunday we are remembering Ameera Bin Karam who was a great role model for women around UAE. She contributed immensely towards empowering and strengthening the economic position of women across the country and was an epitome of a driven citizen who wanted great things for the country. She was passionate about women leadership and continued to pave paths for creativeness, innovation and success for women.
Ameera Bin Karam was a successful businesswoman, unique leader, and rich personality who was bent on giving and sacrificing for the sake of the country. She will always be remembered as a pioneering change maker in the field of women’s empowerment.
Cyber safety
We live in a time where we share so much of our life with the online world that we must stop to wonder- how often do we leave ourselves susceptible to cyber crime?
Although cyber attacks are not physical the repercussions of them can cause severe damage. This could be in the form of cyber bullying, cyber assaults, identity theft such as someone creating a profile using your pictures and name, cyber theft etc.
With an accelerated pace of social media and other online platforms, there needs to be even more awareness amongst us in order for us to protect ourselves and not leave ourselves exposed.
Do you think we have sufficiently protected ourselves even with privacy settings on? Is there enough awareness out there about cyber attacks? Please let us know what you think.
Click below to read how we have made ourselves prone to cyber attacks and what we could do in order to protect ourselves.
http://m.gulfnews.com/news/uae/government/tra-thieves-can-read-your-social-media-posts-1.1704497
http://www.forbes.com/sites/womensenews/2012/05/16/6-online-safety-tips-for-women/#c959e2b6d898
The real reason you procrastinate- and how to stop!!
Have you ever found yourself facing an urgent task or perhaps doing an assignment which is close to deadline and instead of working towards the task you find yourself doing everything possible to delay it. Have you ever wondered why we self sabotage even though we know that delaying would not do us any good and would make the chances of success even more bleak. Why do we procrastinate?
Check out the article below to find out what goes on in our head when we procrastinate and how we can stop doing so:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/04/27/why-you-cant-help-read-this-article-about-procrastination-instead-of-doing-your-job/
Glass Ceiling and why it still exists?
“Promotion rates for women lag behind those of men, and the disparity is largest at the first step up to manager — for every 100 women promoted, 130 men are promoted,”
This doesn’t sound right, does it? What could have caused this disparity? Why are more men getting promoted in comparison to their women counterparts?
One answer — this is because of GLASS CEILING.
Now you would ask — What is Glass Ceiling?
Here it is, in simple language- It is a transparent barrier that hinders professional growth (of women and counting minorities) to higher levels of management.
Even though women have come a long way fighting and progressing in the areas of freedom, rights, education and work professionalism, the statistics still show how far women are lagging behind from holding higher positions in companies and politics.
We have our clear example of glass ceiling where we just saw how U.S was held back from electing their first female president. Well we can’t rightly say that it was only because of glass ceiling, Hillary lost her final battle but definitely it played as one of the roles.
If we look at the statistics, we see that only 5.3% of our Fortune 1000 companies have female CEOs (Forbes 2014). Even more surprisingly women only comprise 14.6% of C-Suite positions and 35% of Middle Management in Fortune 500 companies.
Here are few reasons behind why woman are still not holding C-Suite positions we could analyze into-
1. Societal Expectations: The society still tends to rule over with their set expectations of women where they are expected to put in more hours towards household activities when compared to their male counterparts which eventually hinder their professional growth. Even though the government in developed countries (and some developing countries) are trying to implement policies (such as maternity leaves, child-care arrangements and flexible hours) that minimizes this inequality, there is still a long way to go until the set societal expectations and rules are overridden.
2. The ‘BOYS CLUB’ Phenomena: Another reason why very few women are seen are seen in the C-suite club is due to this ‘Only Boys’ Club pact which makes it very difficult for women to break into and requires super strong will, patience and courage to make it in.
Now that we know that Glass Ceiling still exists and we have to come across solutions that would start bringing in changes, what would it be? Here’s a compilation we’ve got –
- Cultural change — One obvious solution we would give is to start breaking gender stereotypes our society has raised over the past few years and start accepting that every person(regardless of their gender) deserves to live a fair share of their professional and personal life where responsibilities are shared equally among their counterparts without putting either life on stake. But this will definitely take a longgg time, especially in developing countries let alone underdeveloped ones which is where gender issues need to be discussed aggressively and more awareness needs to be spread.
- Another solution is where women actually start helping other women to excel in their career path and minimize the concept of Queen Bees by making it a responsibility of having women advance professionally and climb the corporate ladder.
- As far as problems like the ‘Boys Club’ phenomena is concerned, these require strategic changes to the organization behavior which emphasizes on equal share of male and female holding management and higher positions and has a gender bias free work culture.
- Most importantly, sometimes there are laws existing which help gender inequality issues but women are not aware of them thus they end up struggling without taking any legal action.
-There’s another place women seem successful at breaking glass ceiling, when playing sports — http://edition.cnn.com/2015/10/16/health/team-sports-women-glass-ceiling/
Sources –
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/glass-ceiling-still-exists-53-ceos-women-fortune1000-zack-bell
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/how-queen-bees-and-old-boys-clubs-preserve-glass-ceilings-economicaffairs
The Imposter Phenomenon
Have you ever had moments where you have had tremendous self doubt to a point where your confidence took a shot or perhaps a feeling of being a fraud? Where you think whatever success you have achieved is due to some kind of mistake or a fluke?If so, welcome to the non exclusive club of millions of successful women around the world who feel the same.
This sense of self doubt and fear of being caught is known as Impostor syndrome. Although, it was discovered almost 4 decades ago unfortunately very little has changed since then, except for the fact that more women are susceptible to it than ever before. It is extremely common amongst career women who often underestimate their capabilities and feel like all that they have achieved is not due to their own efforts but rather due to an external reason. It is also very common in women at universities. I too have felt being an imposter on multiple occasions during my degree, still at time owing my first class honors to sheer luck or fearing that the university would call me and say it was a mistake. However, if you feel this way you are not alone. Many successful women such as Sonia Sotomayor, Tina Fey, Sheryl Sandberg and Emma Watson have all claimed to have experienced this feeling.
While both men and women experience the impostor syndrome, studies show that women are more often affected and more likely to suffer the consequences. Another study shows that women are more prone to feeling this way because boys are raised to bluff and exaggerate from a young age, whereas girls, on the other hand, learn early to distrust their opinion and stifle their voices. They discover very early on that they are being judged by the highest physical, behavioral and intellectual standards. Hence, girls start setting extremely high standards for themselves and perfection becomes the goal against which they judge themselves, and not meeting up to that mark often hollows into their self confidence.
Have you ever felt a similar feeling? Do you think women feel this way more than men? Please let us know your thoughts on the Imposter Phenomenon.
Please click link below to find out how to not let the Imposter Syndrome effect you and your career:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-dowdhiggins/impostor-syndrome_b_1651762.html