Making Your Way to The Top
Even though numerous research studies have shown that having more women seated at the decision-making tables improves bottom line profitability for an organization, women sit at the helm of only 12 Fortune 500 companies.
Margie Warrell wrote a compelling piece in Forbes about what women can do more of to make their way to the top executive posts. While men are promoted on potential, women are promoted on performance historically. Men have more role models (other men) and women have very few female executives in leadership roles to seek out as sponsors and mentors. Some companies are making progress with family-friendly facilities and flexibility but women still play the most active role in child rearing so barriers often reflect making choices between family and career when men rarely have to choose between the two.
Warrell offers 3 crucial paradigm shifts for upwardly mobile career women to consider:
Mindset: a fundamental shift into a leader mindset. How we see ourselves determines how others see us. Create a vision that includes the type of impact you want to make incrementally from 5 years to 25 years and set your compass to move forward.
Capacity: intentionally cultivating habits that build resilience and grow leadership capacity. The higher you climb as a leader, the weightier your demands. Add to the do more with less by being more intentional about doing things inside your control so you can better respond to those which aren’t. Build upon your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual resilience, and stamina to respond with greater agility and flexibility.
Courage: a willingness to step into conversations with greater candor and boldness. Women are naturally strong in the dimensions of emotional intelligence – a strong predictor of leadership success. Be courageous in your conversations. Make bold requests, speak candidly, and learn to say no.
Women do make great leaders and as so aptly put by Margie Warrell, women who rise to the ranks of power will not be changed by that power but will instead change the nature of it.
