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Far from others in the sisterhood, I am appalled and somewhat embarrassed by women who "tell me and others how good they are" or complain about the glass ceiling, yet benefit immensely from fluttering their eye-lids, or simply by having a different "reproductive organ" to males that they are so desperate to beat.
There has never been a moment that I can say that I didn't achieve something because I am a woman, but I can tell you, there are many times that I did because I was.
There are many businesses today for the mentoring of women in large corporations. I ask - are we all that sexist that we think it is only women that need mentoring? Why should corporations invest in women being mentored and not men who potentially need it most?
The other thing that gets my "goat" is the fact that women want equal representation on boards as men. 50 / 50 at the bare minimum! Well, really? Shouldn't the best person for the job be representative on any board rather than a woman because of her gender? I have seen time and time again ill deserving women be placed on boards as a token. Who is at fault here? Is it men or is it women? Are these women proud that they may not have deserved to be there over a male counterpart? We all have something to bring to the table, but let's get to the table based on credentials.
I work hard, very hard. I never focus on "not being able to do something because of gender or ethnical background" and instead focus wholeheartedly on doing a great job and delivering on what I promise.
I never want to be employed because I am a woman, as I believe that in my business that it doesn't matter what gender you are - but it does matter whether or not you can do the job well and produce the work that a client is looking for.
I know in Atlanta Women Owned Businesses get a leg up compared to male owned businesses - and it is not something that makes me proud. I am sorry, it's the truth. If you produce outstanding work, you will always be rewarded. There are many women around the world that have conquered the so-called glass ceiling and stand on top some of the biggest companies in the world - deservingly.
Top women that stand out without shedding a tear:
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel
- Tory Burch
- Sara Blakely - Spanx
- Oprah Winfrey
- Hillary Clinton
- Sheryl Sandberg
- Rosalia Mera - Zara
- Arianna Huffington - Huffington Post
- Zhang Xin - Real Estate Tycoon
- Meg Whitman - HP
- Virginia Rometty - IBM
- Indra K. Nooyi - PepsiCo Inc
- Marissa Mayer - Yahoo
- Debra Reed - Sempra Energy
- Deanna Mulligan - Guardian
- Ursula M Burns, - Xerox Corporation
- Marillyn Hewson - Lockheed Martin
- Mary Barra - GM
While Fortune 500 companies are still light on women CEO's accounting for only 4%, I think that woman should just continue to forge ahead, putting their best stiletto forward, with bright red lipstick and continue to showcase their talent, market insights and capabilities and forget about the fact that they are female.
All of which brings me to another point of contention - women do not have to be MEN to be successful. That means that you don't have to be a hard ass, or wear pants to climb the corporate ladder or to be a successful entrepreneur. Use what you have and be proud that you are a woman and can identify with a majority of the market. Never try and be someone you are not and be proud of yourself even if you shed a tear when your male counterparts would not. There is no shame in being a woman but there is shame in getting a position that you do not deserve.
