By Where Have All the Girls Gone?
“Don’t ever get discouraged by someone telling you that you can’t do something or that you won’t be as good at something as other people. No-one else knows what you are capable of.” Michelle Sandford
For a long time we have been dressing our daughters in pink frilly dresses and telling them to be quiet, play gently and not get messy. We expect our boys to do better in science, technology and maths, and our girls to do well at literature, arts and drama. And yet there is no evidence, using any measure of science or empiricism to show that is true. But so often our words create our reality.
work in the technology industry and I believe it is the coolest and most versatile field in the world. Around 20% of the people working in Technology are women. 80% are men. This is not a field that requires its employees to be physically strong, or tall, or muscular. In fact, there are no physical requirements at all. More than any other field, it is adaptable and provides technical assists for any physical lack (although I’d say being a woman more of a strength than a lack). I get to choose the hours I work, if I work from home, the office or a customer site. I’ve travelled all across the world and filled a variety of different roles. It has something for the most extreme introvert (work by yourself, code in the darkness) to the most ardent extrovert (work with customers, be part of a massive team). You get the coolest technology first – I have a Surface Tablet, a Windows Phone and an Xbox – which are both critical to my job and my life.
I was talking to some students at an International Women’s Day event this morning, and describing how exciting and dynamic my career has been. How it all started with a scholarship into a computer science, which was designed to encourage more women into the field. There was some discussion on that kind of incentive – there are those that speak vociferously in favour of the meritocracy. To the brightest and best should go the rewards (jobs, promotions, scholarships, awards etc) – however, although there is no evidence of men scoring higher or performing better in technical roles, there is evidence that they are more often chosen, when all else is equal. Apparently ‘merit’ is a male characteristic
So I am in favour of quotas and of incentives – I think anything that encourages more women into the field so we can move towards a gender balance is good. Too many men, or too many women is no good. But mixed teams provide different ways of looking at problems. We challenge and inspire each other. We work better together. Being in the minority is sometimes an advantage that offsets some of the disadvantages of that minority position. I pointed out that girls can sometimes be much harsher critics than boys (#meangirlsmovie) and saw some very empathetic nods. Balance is the goal, not superiority of one over another.
I did a Tedx Talk last year which describes my belief that the best thing we can all do, for ourselves and for our children, is to opt-in to life, to seek the positive, and to believe we can change the world – by envisioning it and then walking purposely towards that goal. Be sure to check it out, and share the word!