Growing up in a patriarchal society, the girl child faced restrictions on her behaviours, beliefs, and aspirations. As a girl, she was to look a certain way, do ‘girly’ things and aspire under subordination. She was only to be seen and not heard. It was a case of no voice and identity. Her identity came from her marital status.
The society relegated her to the home front. It was unheard of for the girl-child to aspire for leadership positions. This was the reverse for her male counterparts, who were groomed to be firm and ambitious. These attributes are deviations from the calmness and kind-heartedness associated with females. Right from college, we made the boy to be the class captain while the female his assistant. It was unacceptable if they switched positions. We programmed her that way that leadership was not in her path to greatness.
Most women face impostor syndrome. According to a study, the belief that they are not good enough to acclaim their achievements, showed that a man is likely to apply for a job promotion if they meet at least 60% of the job requirements. Women don’t do so unless they meet 100% of the job requirements. This boils down to societal expectation and the ideology around women and self-promotion. Women needed to prove their capabilities twice as much as a man would.
Former US President Barack Obama had stated that if women ran every country in the world, there would be a general improvement in living standards and outcomes. This buttresses the research that shows that companies with more women directors outperformed others by 53%. However, women still face problems in their quest for leadership.
Gender stereotypes are a common phenomenon. There are certain jobs associated only with males. A female mechanic or plumber is not acceptable in the ‘ideal’ society. These are jobs for men because they connected with strength. We expect men to do tedious businesses. The women do caring jobs like nursing and customer care, etc. Since most women are family-oriented, they end up leaving their jobs to raise a family. It faces them with two options- family or career? Women should shatter limiting shackles and pursue leadership. Since they are gifted in multitasking, it is possible for women to maintain work -life balance and achieve their goals.
Written by Patricia Uyeh