Tag Archives: women and culture

She’s Doing It: And in combat boots!!

Woman in U.S. Army Uniform_USARMYDid you know women are the fastest growing group of armed forces veterans with estimates of growing from 1.8 million in 2010 to 2.1 million by 2036? I didn’t until I read some recent reports.

Women have made great strides throughout the U.S. Military, serving in almost every position now. This is a big change in an organizational culture designed by men for men. Change as we know, can create chaos, or at least the feeling of chaos. This week’s “She’s Doing It” celebrates those brave women in uniform, and looks at how they are using No Excuses Power Tool #5, “carpe the chaos” when Janie comes marching home.

Posted in 9 Ways Blog, Carpe the Chaos, Gender, Inspiration, Leadership, No Excuses, Power Tools, She's Doing It, Workplace | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Seriously? Must a Woman Be Like a Man to Get Ahead?

Woman in FedoraThat question comes up every time I speak with women about their career aspirations.

A second question just as surely follows: if we can’t be authentically who we are, why would we want to “succeed” in male-dominated organizations or professions? Many women who leave the corporate world to stay home with children or enter entrepreneurial or nonprofit fields—or alternately, remain quietly in their jobs put only to find themselves doing the work but not getting the promotions—say they do so because they don’t want to become like men.

Yet all signs point to a potential breakthrough moment for women even as we debate the pros and cons of taking on male camouflage.

Posted in 9 Ways Blog, Define Your Own Terms, Embrace Controversy, Employ Every Medium, Equal pay, Gender, Inspiration, Leadership, No Excuses, Workplace | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Seriously? Must a Woman Be Like a Man to Get Ahead?

Stories Heal, Stories Connect, Stories Matter

Your heartfelt responses to Amy Ferris’s extraordinary post “I Matter” tell me I’m not alone in being moved by it. Amy’s plunge into the coldest, deepest wells of pain–her courage to swim around in those emotionally drenching experiences, then emerge to share them– and at the same time to share her liberation from the most debilitating parts of her story.

All compelling stories require an antagonist as well as a protagonist, it’s tempting to see Amy’s mother as the villain of the piece. But I’ve also been thinking about something my friend Angela (not her real name, pending permission) said to me one day last February, as we were power walking along the canal near my Scottsdale home. Basking in the desert’s relative winter warmth, I was delighted that Angela had found two days to pop over for a visit after a board meeting in California. Her distinguished career includes having led important nonprofit and governmental organizations in two countries; now she serves on 10 prestigious international boards.

Posted in Power Tools, Tell Your Story | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments
 
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Copyright 2010 Gloria Feldt